Movers and Shakers

Former Nauru President, Baron Waqa has begun his term as the new Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF). He succeeds Henry Puna. Pacific Islands Climate Action Network (PICAN) has appointed Rufino Varea as

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Guam eyed as Micronesian hub for Nauru Airlines

Guam leaders have begun a dialogue with Nauru Airlines to explore air service expansion and consider a proposal to create a regional hub on island. The meeting between Guam officials and Nauru Airlines executives

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‘Very early stages’ of talks on viability of Nauru Airlines’ direct Australia-Guam route

Visiting Nauru Airline officials on Tuesday met with Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero and other local officials on the possibility of adding Guam to Nauru Airlines’ route, as it once did in the 1990s and early 2000s.

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Fiji and Rabuka’s Peacemaking Ambitions

The prime minister is promoting his “Ocean of Peace” concept, despite significant dissonance within Fiji’s foreign policy.  Speaking to a rapt audience, Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka shared an account

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Briefs

American Samoa Concerns have been raised over conditions at Tafuna Prison. Samoa News reports that a hearing of the Senate Public Safety/Homeland Security Committee heard that the buildings are unfit for human

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Washington nixes Guam and American Samoa’s bid for PIF membership

The federal government has poured cold water on Guam and American Samoa’s hopes of gaining membership of the Pacific Islands Forum, stating that U.S. territories are constitutionally restricted from representing

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Briefs

Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas A special committee has been formed to look into the unpaid utility bills of the government of the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, which has now ballooned to a whopping

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Whispers

Which way after Tuvalu?So, what’s next for Australia’s strategy in the region, after the Falepili agreement with Tuvalu? There are noises there could be another such agreement in the works with Fiji, while the

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Pragmatist, Puppetmaster or Puppet?

“Tonight we take the first step in telling our story to the whole world.” That was Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare’s declaration when opening the region’s premier sporting competition, the

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Briefs

American SamoaAmerican Samoa’s newest park is being developed on eight acres of government land in the village of Vaitogi. The Talanei reported that $839,340 has been spent on the project. It will include a 27-hole

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Data gaps hamper displacement discussion

Pacific Island negotiators at COP28 face the challenge of quantifying the economic and non-economic costs human displacement due to a lack of systematic data collection. But Lorenzo Guadagno, the Project Coordinator for

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Opinion: Can the Commonwealth save paradise?

As Foreign Minister of Ghana, I do get around a fair bit.  Often, I’m immersed in briefing papers on flights, with little to no time for looking out the window to take in the aerial sights on the approach to

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