Australia tables Ocean of Peace Alliance and Vuvale Union treaties with Fiji
AUSTRALIA and Fiji have tabled treaties to deepen military cooperation, integrate their economies and strengthen joint efforts against transnational crime, illicit drugs and regional insecurity, Australian Foreign
PACNEWS THREE 10 AUGUST 2026
In this bulletin: 1. PACIFIC — Australia maintains $5.2b Aid Programme as Pacific takes priority2. PACIFIC — Missile test crosses multiple Pacific EEZs3. TONGA — Two by-elections to be held after Tonga
Australia outstrips China in Pacific aid
AUSTRALIA has overtaken China to become the Pacific’s dominant source of lending and infrastructure investment according to the 2026 Lowy Institute Pacific Aid Map.
Australia appoints New High Commissioner to Naoero
AUSTRALIA has appointed career diplomat Lisa White as its next high commissioner to Naoero (Nauru).
Pacific strengthens united climate agenda as COP31 countdown begins
PACIFIC climate ministers have reinforced a united regional agenda ahead of COP31, pledging to strengthen the region's negotiating influence as global geopolitical uncertainty threatens progress on climate
Australia considers joint sea patrols, Forum remains silent on China missile tests
AUSTRALIA has not ruled out increased joint patrols of the South China after what it has described as a "destabilising" missile test in the Pacific.
PTI Australia and DAFF webinar to help Pacific exporters navigate Australian market access
Pacific exporters seeking to expand into the Australian market will have the opportunity to gain practical guidance on
Australia launches five-week hydrographic mission in PNG
AUSTRALIA will deploy its hydrographic survey ship, HMAS Leeuwin, to Papua New Guinea for a five-week mission to improve navigation safety and strengthen maritime cooperation.
Australia, PNG unveil first mutual defence treaty in more than 70 years
AUSTRALIA and Papua New Guinea have formalised a landmark mutual defence treaty, a move the two governments cast as a major upgrade in security ties and a new phase in the relationships between the Pacific neighbours.
Will Australia’s diplomatic streak last?
LAST week , Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Vanuatu’s Jotham Napat, signed the Nakamal Agreement in Canberra, a security pact that, among other things, bars foreign military bases from Vanuatu’s
Australia launches new Pacific skills programme as APTC ends
AUSTRALIA will spend $FJD359.8 million on skills development in Fiji and Timor-Leste over 2025-2029, as Canberra moves to deepen its regional training footprint through a new programme focused on jobs, industry needs
Albanese says Fiji deal fully budgeted, not aimed at China
AUSTRALIA and Fiji have rejected suggestions their new security and development agreement was designed to shut out China.
Fiji, Australia redraws the Pacific security map with new defence alliance
FIJI and Australia have deepened their strategic partnership, with Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka saying Canberra has committed more than $FJD280 million in new investments since October 2023.
Albanese arrives in Fiji to reinforce Australia’s Pacific pivot
AUSTRALIAN Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s Fiji visit on the back of signing the Nakamal Agreement with Vanuatu signals Canberra’s major shift in diplomacy and defence.
PACNEWS ONE, 06 JULY 2026
In this bulletin: 1. PACIFIC — Australian PM Albanese touches down in Fiji ahead of new Pacific deal2. PACIFIC — PM Wale urges Indonesia to pursue dialogue and reduce tensions in West Papua3. PACIFIC —
Tuvalu and Australia launch WWII ordnance survey in Nanumea Lagoon
TUVALU and Australia have launched Operation RENDER SAFE 2026, a technical reconnaissance mission aimed at identifying unexploded World War II ordnance in Nanumea Lagoon.
Vanuatu Chiefs challenge Canberra deal over use of ‘Nakamal’ name
THE Vanuatu Malvatumauri Council of Chiefs has raised fresh objections to the use of the word “Nakamal” in Vanuatu’s new bilateral agreement with Australia.
Pacific security race heats up as Australia and China court Vanuatu
CHINA has pushed back against Australia’s new security pact with Vanuatu, warning that bilateral agreements in the Pacific should not be aimed at third countries.
Time for a big idea to secure Solomons partnership
THE Solomon Islands is one of the most contested environments in the Indo-Pacific with respect to China’s political warfare
Vanuatu, Australia sign landmark Nakamal Agreement
AUSTRALIA and Vanuatu have signed a new treaty which will deepen security, disaster response, and economic ties between the two countries.
Reading PALM numbers with care – pay, deductions and hours edition
A PACIFIC worker putting in 30 hours on an Australian farm, earning $AUD937 and taking home just over $100 after deductions, as put to a Senate committee in 2022, became, for many people, a defining image of the Pacific
Australia’s huge nuclear dilemma
THE 2026 Lowy Institute Poll reflects an Australia uneasy about its place in the world.
Why has Vanuatu been dropped from the Pacific visa scheme?
THOUSANDS of ni-Vanuatu hoping to apply for permanent residency in Australia next month are seeking answers after Vanuatu was
