Category: pacific island nations

US, Micronesia Sign Pact to Deepen Ties Amid China’s Growing Influence

The United States and Micronesia signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Feb. 10 reaffirming their close ties, a pact considered crucial to the U.S. efforts to counter Beijing’s growing influence in the Pacific. The State Department noted that the MOU reflected a “shared understanding reached on levels and types of future U.S. assistance to…


US Must Strengthen Ties With Freely Associated States to Counter China in Indo-Pacific: Report

The three Freely Associated States in the Pacific Islands region with whom the United States holds special economic and defense relationships are important for countering China’s increasing footprint in the region, according to a recent report by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), a federally-funded think tank. Amidst this increasing power rivalry with China, the…


Beijing Inks Security, Economic and Disaster Relief Deal With Pacific Nation Tonga

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has managed to secure several bilateral agreements with Tonga on disaster relief, agriculture, fishery, health and police equipment as he reaches the backend of his ten-day trip around the Pacific. It comes after Beijing vows to continue pushing Pacific nations to join a sweeping regional security and economy deal despite…


Palau Questions China’s ‘True Intent’ in Pushing New Security Deals in Pacific

Pacific island nations have made the right decision by withdrawing from China’s proposed regional economic and security deal, Palau’s President Surangel Whipps Jr. said on Monday, pushing back on Beijing’s plans in the region. “I think it’s always been about what is the true intent in stepping up, especially when it came to security. Why…


Fiji Joins US-Led IPEF, ‘Deepening’ Partnership in Contentious Pacific Islands

The island country of Fiji is joining the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), according to a Thursday White House statement. Situated in the Pacific, a region that’s increasingly contentious in step with expanding Chinese influence, Fiji’s joining IPEF gives the Biden administration a diplomatic victory over Beijing. “IPEF now reflects the full regional…


Chinese Minister Embarks on 8-Nation Pacific Trip to Boost Alliances

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will embark on a 10-day trip to the Solomon Islands and seven other Pacific Island nations this week to boost Beijing’s alliances with the nations. China’s Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Wang would visit the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, and Timor Leste from…


Australia Looks to Establish a ‘Pacific Islands Regiment’ to Counter Foreign Threat

Australia and its neighbouring countries are seeking to establish a “Pacific Islands Regiment” to strengthen defence ties and protect regional sovereignty, as the Pacific area’s security continues to come under the growing China threat. The new land-based military force, which is raised within the Australian Army, would carry out peacekeeping missions and intervene in the…