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The Latest Breaking News from Pacific islands

'Teaching our children from books, not the sea': how climate change is eroding human rights in Vanuatu

There’s a lot at stake over the next fortnight as nations gather at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt. But the stakes are perhaps highest for the Pacific islands and their people.

The Conversation

Australia's borders are open, so where are all the backpackers?

Backpackers on working holiday maker visas have been a crucial source of farm labour for decades, alongside smaller numbers of temporary migrants from the Pacific Islands, international students, and Australians.

The Conversation

Samoa thumps France at Rugby League World Cup to set up quarterfinal clash with Tonga

Samoa's shocking loss to England remains the headline of the World Cup, but there is still a chance for the star-studded Pacific Islands nation to relegate it to a footnote, writes Nick Campton.

ABC News

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Aid spending soared to record level in Pacific islands as COVID-19 hit

A record $3.3 billion in aid flowed to the Pacific islands in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, a 33% increase on the previous year, according to a report released by the Lowy Institute think-tank on Monday.

Reuters

Vanuatu calls snap election amid superpower contest in Pacific Islands

The South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu will hold a snap election on Thursday with six former prime ministers contesting the poll, after parliament was dissolved in August to avoid a vote of no confidence in the government, said local media.

Reuters

Pacific Islands backed a partnership with the US, but China unlikely to be deterred in push for influence

A week after the US and the Pacific signed a historic joint-partnership declaration, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown says China had a "different approach to engaging with the Pacific" to the US, while an expert says Beijing will not be deterred from pushing for influence in the region.

ABC News

Biden uses $130M in frozen Egypt aid to help Pacific Islands

The Biden administration will pay for $130 million in new climate initiatives for Pacific Island nations by reallocating money that originally been earmarked for military assistance for Egypt

The Independent UK

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Red carpet rolled out in US bid to woo Pacific Islands from China

Washington is in heated competition with Beijing for influence among Pacific island nations.

Al Jazeera

US has agreed Pacific Islands deal, offering ‘big dollar numbers’

The US is looking to reengage in a region where China has been steadily expanding its influence.

Al Jazeera

U.S. says it has agreed Pacific Islands partnership, offering 'big dollar' aid

The United States said at a summit with Pacific island leaders on Wednesday that it had agreed on a partnership for the future with them and held out the prospect of "big dollar" help to a region where it hopes to stem China's expanding influence.

Reuters

Solomon Islands tells Pacific islands it won't sign White House summit declaration -note

The Solomon Islands has told Pacific nations invited to a White House meeting with President Joe Biden it won't sign the summit declaration, according to a note seen by Reuters, prompting concern over the islands' ties to China.

Reuters

Pacific Islands brace for prolonged droughts and more flooding as La Niña continues for third year in a row

Some Pacific Island nations are still recovering from floods or facing severe drought conditions, and there is little reprieve in sight as a third La Niña is set to exacerbate extreme weather conditions across the region.

ABC News

China strategy in Pacific islands a cause for US concern: Report

To counter China’s growing influence in the Pacific the US should bolster support for island states, new report states.

Al Jazeera

Pacific islands a key U.S. military buffer to China's ambitions - report

China sees the Pacific islands as an area of significant strategic interest and the United States should strengthen its commitment to north Pacific island states, now in talks to renew a defence compact, to maintain a vital military buffer, a report released Tuesday by a U.S. Congress-funded think tank said.

Reuters

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Reuters

Pacific Islands students target U.N. court as key weapon to fight climate change

In the shadow of the United Nations' towering headquarters in New York City, law student Solomon Yeo from an island nation in the South Pacific is taking in what he describes as a “surreal moment.”

Bangkok Post

BOI welcomes delegation from Egypt

A delegation from the Arab Republic of Egypt led by Mr. Ayman Kamel, Assistant Foreign Minister for Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands, and H.E. Mr. Moustapha Mahmoud Moustapha Elkouny, Ambassador to Thailand, visited the headquarters of the Thailand Board of Investment on 12 September 2022. They were…

The Conversation

US takes a renewed interest in the Pacific – and China's role in it

If you are trying to find traces of the United States’ long and layered ties with the Pacific Islands in Washington D.C., you need to look hard. Apart from the names of iconic battles chiselled into the Washington Mall’s second world war memorial, evidence of America’s complex Pacific history stretching…

ABC News

Boosting US-Pacific ties a priority, says top US diplomat during WWII memorial visit to Solomon Islands

Strengthening ties with the Pacific is a priority for the Biden administration, says a top US diplomat, while warning the region faces a struggle from countries that seek to coerce and pressure the Pacific Islands family.

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Reuters

Pacific Islands solidarity is a Biden priority, U.S. diplomat tells Solomons

U.S. President Joe Biden sees strong ties with Pacific Island countries as a priority, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said in the Solomon Islands on Sunday, underscoring the stakes of her visit as tensions have been mounting in the region.

The Guardian - AU

Greens want to ‘improve and pass’ Labor’s climate bill but remain critical of 43% target

Adam Bandt says state of environment report and pressure from Pacific Islands leaders should be enough for Labor to negotiate on emissions

The Guardian - AU

The seas are rising on Pacific islands nations – but so is their powerful resistance

As the climate crisis threatens their existence, an assertive new collective are using their leverage as a flashpoint in geopolitical tensions

Reuters

New Caledonia says it won't be 'trojan horse' for big powers in the Pacific

The pro-independence president of New Caledonia, a French overseas territory, said he didn't want New Caledonia to be used as a "trojan horse" in the Pacific islands, amid global power jostling for influence in the region.

Reuters

Pacific islands leaders commit to regional unity in face of superpower rivalry

Pacific island leaders have agreed to take a united approach as the United States and China vie for influence in the region, and to push developed nations for bolder action on climate change, which they say is the biggest threat they face.

AAP

Pacific supports Aust on climate: Albanese

The Pacific Islands Forum has wrapped up after an all-day summit of leaders in Fiji, with Australian PM Anthony Albanese declaring the meeting a success.

The Guardian - AU

US announces new embassies in major Pacific push as it jostles with China for influence in region

Vice-president Kamala Harris has announced postings in Kiribati and Tonga as leaders gather in Fiji for the Pacific Islands Forum

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