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  • 30 Jan 2023
    • Aid & Development
    • Pacific Islands

    Getting it together: Pacific engagement still lacks coordination

    Meg Keen
    Showing collective action across countries and sectors is essential to Pacific development and winning friends.
  • 25 Jan 2023
    • Aid & Development
    • China – Belt and Road Initiative
    • Development Assistance
    • Australia and the Pacific
    • Australian Foreign Aid
    • Pacific Islands
    • Papua New Guinea
    • Solomon Islands

    Chinese aid to the Pacific: decreasing, but not disappearing

    Alexandre Dayant , Meg Keen , Roland Rajah
    With fewer Chinese finances available and less demand from Pacific countries, geopolitical competition is opening up.
  • 19 Jan 2023
    • Australia and the Pacific
    • Pacific Islands
    • China and the Pacific
    • Solomon Islands

    Weaving webs of statecraft in the Pacific Islands

    Joanne Wallis , Henrietta McNeill , Alan C. Tidwell , Czeslaw Tubilewicz
    Gaining influence in the region is about tools and techniques, not just the actors.
  • 19 Jan 2023
    • Climate change
    • International law
    • Pacific Islands

    The acid test: legal moves to force action on climate change

    Donald R Rothwell
    Small island states are now adopting a determined strategy of “lawfare” to bring attention to environmental threats.
  • 27 Dec 2022
    • China
    • Australia
    • Pacific Islands
    • Solomon Islands

    How to Interpret 2022: Solomon Islands strikes a deal

    Clare Caldwell
    Honiara’s foreign policy caused ripples across the region, as we round up highlights of the year from The Interpreter.
  • 20 Dec 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Fiji

    Fiji’s coalition of convenience: what’s next?

    Meg Keen
    A focus on recovery from the pandemic makes international support essential, whichever coalition forms government.
  • 16 Dec 2022
    • Aid & Development
    • Coronavirus
    • Pacific Islands

    A changing aid landscape in the Pacific

    Alexandre Dayant , Roland Rajah , Riley Duke
    Budget support was favoured during the pandemic, with loans — which must be repaid — also overtaking grants.
  • 25 Nov 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Papua New Guinea
    • Solomon Islands
    • Vanuatu

    Riots serve an unexpected lesson in the Pacific

    Anouk Ride
    A new report on civil unrest in the region calls for a longer and wider lens in analysing reasons and rationales.
  • 21 Nov 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • United States

    Will the new US Congress still pay for its Pacific promises?

    Jessica Collins
    The Biden administration has staked $810 million on a regional strategy and now must ensure bipartisan support.
  • 18 Nov 2022
    • Climate change
    • Environment
    • Migration
    • Pacific Islands
    • Tonga
    • Vanuatu

    Strengthening disaster resilience in the Pacific

    Sam Quinn
    The aftermath of Tonga’s massive volcanic eruption holds valuable lessons as climate change risks also grow.
  • 9 Nov 2022
    • Aid & Development
    • China
    • Pacific Islands

    An explanation for the decline of China’s aid in the Pacific

    Jia Deng
    A drop in Chinese funding may be a sign of belt tightening in an effort to tackle Beijing’s own domestic debt problem.
  • 31 Oct 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • China and the Pacific

    China’s influence as a Pacific donor

    Denghua Zhang
    Beijing has taken steps to increase its influence in the island region at the same time as its aid levels decline.
  • 21 Oct 2022
    • China
    • Australia
    • Pacific Islands

    Waiting for the thaw: the Pacific hopeful on Australia-China reset

    Shailendra Bahadur Singh
    The island countries stand to benefit from any improvement in relations between two big development partners.
  • 11 Oct 2022
    • Aid & Development
    • Australia and the Pacific
    • Australian Development Assistance
    • Pacific Islands
    • Papua New Guinea
    • United States

    The Global Fragility Act in PNG: can the US succeed?

    Jessica Collins
    A seemingly radical approach that relies on prevention and relinquishing control may be a foreign policy game-changer.
  • 10 Oct 2022
    • Australia
    • Pacific Islands
    • Public Opinion

    Australia and Pacific Islands: Polls apart?

    Meg Keen
    Without a comprehensive public opinion survey of Pacific people, common attitudes can be challenging to identify.
  • 3 Oct 2022
    • Diplomacy
    • Pacific Islands
    • United States

    “See it through my lens”: the optics of fashion diplomacy

    Kate Clayton , Henrietta McNeill
    Sunglasses are a staple in the US President’s diplomatic style but not every leader can share the benefit.
  • 27 Sep 2022
    • Pacific Islands

    The president vs the judge: How Kiribati came to a constitutional standoff

    Anna Dziedzic
    Judicial independence and access to justice is at risk as judges face deportation and suspension from office.
  • 13 Sep 2022
    • Asean
    • Indonesia
    • Pacific Islands
    • Fiji
    • Solomon Islands
    • Vanuatu

    Why Indonesia’s engagement with Pacific countries matters

    Aristyo Rizka Darmawan
    Sovereignty, trust and mutual benefit are all at stake when so many regions come together under the Indo-Pacific banner.
  • 8 Sep 2022
    • Aid & Development
    • Australia
    • Australia's Economy
    • Migration
    • Pacific Islands

    Economic diplomacy: Nation building at home and abroad

    Greg Earl
    A jobs summit highlighted the challenges in crafting a foreign policy for the middle class and balanced development aid.
  • 20 Aug 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • United States

    Next steps for American engagement with the Pacific Islands

    Alan C. Tidwell
    Stronger local ties will help the United States play catch-up in its quest to effectively compete with China.
  • 16 Aug 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • New Zealand
    • Sex and Gender

    Wrong balance of power in Pacific

    Elzanne Bester
    New Zealand can bolster the international rules-based order by working towards Pacific women’s political representation.
  • 28 Jul 2022
    • China
    • Australia
    • Trade
    • Pacific Islands

    Economic diplomacy: The Pacific reset needs real commercial investment

    Greg Earl
    The language of geopolitics is trickling down to unexpected corners of the economy with wide-ranging long-term impact.
  • 27 Jul 2022
    • Pacific Islands

    What happened at the Pacific Islands Forum

    Jessica Collins
    A historic hugs and dialling-down regional rivalries. How a week of Pacific diplomacy unfolded.
  • 27 Jul 2022
    • Trade and Investment in the Asia Pacific
    • Timor-Leste
    • Asean
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Trade
    • Pacific Islands

    Economic diplomacy: The Pacific beats ASEAN for nervous investors

    Greg Earl
    Abe Shinzo’s passing and the Timor oil spy case dismissal reveal new thinking about what national security means.
  • 26 Jul 2022
    • Australia
    • Sustainability
    • Pacific Islands

    Support Pacific neighbours by strengthening indigenous food systems

    Essam Yassin Mohammed
    Unique knowledge was usurped by colonialism and imported production. Time to build resilience, from the shore up.
  • 26 Jul 2022
    • Diplomacy
    • Pacific Islands

    Pacific Islands Forum meeting: the black cloud returns

    Jessica Collins
    A continued dispute over the Secretary General position has challenged unity of the Pacific family.
  • 25 Jul 2022
    • Aid & Development
    • Australia
    • Pacific Islands
    • International law

    Engaging with the Pacific: the legal angle

    Sarah McCosker , Joanne Wallis , Melissa Conley Tyler
    The often complex and transnational legal challenges facing the region are an opportunity to foster cooperation.
  • 30 Jun 2022
    • China – Belt and Road Initiative
    • Australia
    • Pacific Islands
    • Global Economy

    Economic diplomacy: Names trump numbers in the new BRI debt battle

    Greg Earl
    As G7 leaders talk up infrastructure spending, Australia’s Pacific family members contemplate how much they can take.
  • 10 Jun 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • Sex and Gender

    Penny Wong dives deep into the audacity of the Oceanic Pacific

    ‘Ofa-ki-Levuka (‘Ofa) Guttenbeil-Likiliki
    Nurturing relationships is paramount to break down unequal power dynamics ­– especially in working for women rights.
  • 3 Jun 2022
    • Asia
    • Pacific Islands
    • Multilateral Development Banks
    • Asean
    • Australia
    • Energy

    Labor should create a “Regional Carbon Bank” for ASEAN and the Pacific

    Peter McCawley
    An urgent demand for clean electricity infrastructure requires needs a dedicated, multilateral agency in support.
  • 1 Jun 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • China

    Competing with China in the Pacific will backfire

    Miranda Booth
    Co-operation, not competition, provides the best chance for Australia to enhance ties with Pacific Island countries.
  • 1 Jun 2022
    • Asia
    • Pacific Islands
    • Sustainability

    Water torture: Asia‑Pacific’s “WASH” crisis in need of solutions

    JJ Rose
    Access to clean water is not only a development challenge but one for geopolitics, too.
  • 1 Jun 2022
    • Global Economy
    • Pacific Islands
    • IMF

    Don’t saddle Pacific Islands with disaster debt

    Luke Fletcher
    It would be immoral for high-emitting countries to put an extra burden on nations suffering more extreme weather events.
  • 30 May 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia

    Would China? Australia’s chance to back women police in the Pacific

    Melissa Jardine
    Promoting gender equality and enhancing maritime law enforcement will ensure Australia stands apart.
  • 30 May 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • New Caledonia
    • France

    Australia can’t stay silent on decolonisation in the Pacific

    Nic Maclellan
    As Canberra and Paris repair ties, presenting France as a “Pacific country” would undermine regional independence.
  • 27 May 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • Australia and the Pacific

    Labor’s Pacific plan: ticking the economic box

    Jessica Collins
    Tightening up on fees charged for remittances will ensure millions of dollars get to households across the region.
  • 25 May 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Climate change
    • Coronavirus

    Pacific youth: challenges today need the leaders of tomorrow

    Aidan Craney
    On climate, geopolitics, recovering from pandemic, and more – it’s vital to engage youth populations across the region.
  • 11 May 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australian Diplomacy

    Resetting Australia’s relationship with the Pacific – three ideas

    Anna Gibert
    Listen, for a start. Getting down to granular, person-to-person engagement is needed for effective regional diplomacy.
  • 10 May 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • China
    • Solomon Islands

    Chinese bases in the Pacific: A reality check

    Sam Roggeveen
    Frustrating Beijing’s ambitions to create a sphere of influence is overwhelmingly a diplomatic task, not a military one.
  • 7 Apr 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australian Foreign Aid
    • Chinese Foreign Aid
    • Australia
    • China

    Economic diplomacy: Priorities shift amid a budget aid boost

    Greg Earl
    The IMF has given Chinese spending a tick as Australia tries to muscle up in the Pacific.
  • 29 Mar 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • Migration

    Changing our view of Pacific visas

    Jessica Collins
    Australia’s claims to be part of the “Pacific family” would be helped by more migration options – especially for women.
  • 23 Mar 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Papua New Guinea
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Pacific nations send a message on Ukraine – and great power rivalries

    Patrick Kaiku
    Pacific states are watching Ukraine because their sovereignty and territorial integrity can also easily be violated.
  • 24 Feb 2022
    • Pacific Islands

    Micronesia stays in the Pacific Islands Forum fold – for now

    Gil Rickey
    But Australia faces its own test amid tensions over leadership of the regional grouping.
  • 18 Feb 2022
    • Pacific Islands

    A few remarkable wins for Pacific women in local politics

    Jessica Collins
    But what is far too often the exception should become the norm.
  • 11 Feb 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • United States

    Kick-starting America’s Pacific diplomacy

    Jonathan Pryke , Mihai Sora
    Trying to force a “choice” with China would be a mistake. But US can win plenty of good will living up to its promises.
  • 18 Jan 2022
    • Global Economy
    • Pacific Islands

    Bang for buck: Getting the most out of Pacific Islander remittances

    Jessica Collins
    Cash sent by family abroad is essential for local economies but doesn’t come cheap.
  • 16 Dec 2021
    • Pacific Islands
    • Review

    Team Pacific serves up a revolution: Interpreter 2021 favourites

    Mihai Sora
    A reality TV cooking show that is about so much more than simply food.
  • 22 Nov 2021
    • Coronavirus
    • Pacific Islands

    Forecasting vaccination in the Pacific

    Alexandre Dayant
    In the race to protect populations, big parts of the region have fallen well behind.
  • 18 Nov 2021
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia

    Economic diplomacy: Remaking the Pacific house

    Greg Earl
    Two new studies provide the building plans for Australia’s regional infrastructure boom.
  • 4 Nov 2021
    • Global Economy
    • Pacific Islands
    • United States
    • Australia
    • Technology

    Economic diplomacy: Supply chains, sanctions, and Telstra Pacific

    Greg Earl
    From ports to productivity, the pandemic has only exposed longstanding economic resilience issues in Australia.
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