Pacific

Canadian Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Wednesday that with the voluntary return of 23 permits by Chevron Canada in February, energy companies have surrendered the last of the outstanding permits for oil and gas drilling off Canada’s Pacific coast.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) Prime Minister James Marape said on Tuesday that a security treaty with Australia has been delayed due to “certain wordings and provisions.”

China’s state-run Global Times on Monday sneered at news of an expanded security agreement between the United States and Papua New Guinea (PNG), describing President Joe Biden’s snub of the island nation as “proof the U.S. is not taking ties with Pacific Island nations seriously.”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken joined Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for meetings with 14 Pacific Island leaders in Papua New Guinea (PNG) on Monday.

(AFP) — Australia and China’s defence ministers met for the first time in three years on Sunday, with the talks described as “an important first step” following a period of strained ties.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told Radio New Zealand (RNZ) on Monday her government was “gravely” concerned by the Solomon Islands’ recent confirmation it signed a security pact with China.

The UK announced new military talks with Japan just hours after China protested Britain sailing a warship through the Taiwan Strait. 

The French government is seething over Australia’s decision to drop a troubled multi-billion French submarine deal in favour of collaboration with Britain and America, describing it as “treason”. 

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – France would have known Australia had “deep and grave concerns” that a submarine fleet the French were building would not meet Australian needs, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Sunday after the contract’s cancellation set off a diplomatic crisis.

Australia said Saturday it was noting with regret France’s recall of its ambassador over the surprise cancellation of a submarine contract in favour of a U.S. deal.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australian special envoy and former Prime Minister Tony Abbott said a free trade agreement between his nation and India would signal the “democratic world’s tilt away from China.”

PAPEETE, French Polynesia (AP) – President Emmanuel Macron is visiting French Polynesia to showcase France’s commitment to the region amid concerns about the impact of climate change on the Pacific island territory, the legacy of French nuclear testing on its atolls – and most of all, growing Chinese dominance in the region.

Samoa’s expected new prime minister said Thursday she plans to cancel a China-backed port development project on the island worth $100 million out of concern Samoa is already overly indebted to Beijing. “Samoa is a small country. Our seaports and

Britain is taking advantage of its newfound autonomy from the EU to apply for membership of the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

An increasing number of Pacific island nations are turning to the Beijing-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Chinese government for financing, Reuters observed this weekend.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia has announced it will spend 500 million Australian dollars ($351 million) to secure COVID-19 vaccines for the Pacific and South-east Asia “as part of a shared recovery for our region from the pandemic.”

The Pacific nation of Palau urged the U.S. this week to build military bases on its island territory amid growing Chinese influence in the western Pacific region.

(AFP) — New Zealand plans to open a virus-free “travel bubble” with the tiny Pacific realm of the Cook Islands before year’s end, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Monday, while expressing caution about a similar arrangement with Australia.

Thousands of American troops currently stationed in Germany are expected to redeploy to the Indo-Pacific theater as the U.S. shifts its geopolitical focus to China, the Nikkei Asian Review reported on Sunday.

The South Pacific nation of Tuvalu on Thursday rejected a $400 million plan to build artificial islands in the area proposed by companies linked to the Chinese government.

President Donald Trump denied knowing of a White House effort to keep the USS John McCain out of sight during his visit to Japan and a trip to visit Armed Forces in the Pacific.

Trump said to the troops gathered on the ship. “Our freedom is earned through the blood and sweat and toil and sacrifice of great American patriots just like you.”

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison delivered a foreign policy speech on Thursday that rolled out a $2 billion infrastructure bank that will loan money for telecommunications, energy, water, and transportation projects to Pacific nations.

NOUMEA, New Caledonia (AP) – Voters in New Caledonia are deciding whether the French territory in the South Pacific should break free from the European country that claimed it in the mid-19th century.

Another global warming scare story bites the dust: fragile islands and atolls in the Pacific are not sinking beneath the waves because of global warming. In fact, they are doing just fine.

China’s delegation angrily walked out of the Pacific Islands Forum on Tuesday when the host of the meeting, President Baron Waqa of Nauru, refused to allow Chinese representative Du Qiwen to deliver a speech on global warming.

Western powers, including the United States, Australia, France, and Britain plan to expand their influence in the Pacific in an effort to contain China’s influence, Reuters revealed in a report Thursday.

China’s state-run Global Times published a vocal defense of the nation’s “One Belt, One Road” infrastructure plan on Tuesday, insisting the predatory loans it offers to developing nations come “with no political strings attached” and that those who warn China is attempting to colonize poorer countries have their own “ulterior motives.”

China’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Friday denying allegations that its financial assistance programs for Pacific nations are an effort to buy political influence and muscle out regional competitors, especially Taiwan. The Foreign Ministry insisted China’s $5.9 billion in pledged foreign aid comes with no strings attached.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the Indo-Pacific Business Forum on Monday that business engagement and “free and open” trade are major elements of the Trump administration’s strategic vision for the region. Although he mentioned China only in passing, Secretary Pompeo’s remarks included a clear warning to regional powers about the perils of partnering with Beijing.

AFP — The Pacific nation of Tuvalu — long seen as a prime candidate to disappear as climate change forces up sea levels — is actually growing in size, new research shows. A University of Auckland study examined changes in

It was a once-in-a-decade display of American firepower.

Australia has sent a naval ship to help evacuate thousands of people from Vanuatu’s Ambae island, where a volcano is threatening a major eruption.

Hillary Clinton’s pollster admitted last October that her new conditional opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal is driven by poll numbers, not by her personal convictions.

The balance of military power in the Asia-Pacific is shifting against the United States, as China and North Korea challenge the credibility of U.S. security commitments and the Pentagon faces spending limits, according to a study released on Tuesday.

China’s state-run news service, Xinhua, lays it on pretty thick in an editorial titled “Xi’s Epic Bid for Better U.S. Ties Bolsters Asian Peace, Prosperity.”