Opinion: The big dry: Marshallese scramble for water sources

For over 50 days from the end of February to the second week of April, El Niño took its toll on Majuro, the capital of the Marshall Islands.  During that period, only trace rainfall was recorded. A large number of the

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Micronesia: Prolonged drought now impacting food and water across region

Extreme droughts in the Western Pacific region are expected to persist over the next three months. Parts of the Marshall Islands, Guam, Palau, Mariana Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) are now

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Strengthen health systems, says WHO Regional Director Dr Piukala

Regional Director of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Western Pacific, Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, has told the Pacific Heads of Health Meeting currently underway in Samoa that climate change and health security are

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Power crisis continues in Majuro

Announced and emergency power outages, and power rationing have governed life in the capital of the Marshall Islands since late last year.  The problem reached an all-time low in January when various areas of Majuro

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Marshall Islands launches public engagement on new Compact deal

While both Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) have endorsed their new Compacts of Free Association with Washington, the Marshall Islands just launched its review process Thursday with the first of a

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“When are we going back?” – Nuclear Displacement in the Marshall Islands

Gina Langinbelik Anuntak is a student at the College of the Marshall Islands (CMI). She is President of the CMI Nuclear Club, a student association that unites Marshallese students to understand the legacies of the 20th

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Pressure builds at IMO meet for charge on global shipping sector’s CO2 emissions

The European Union, Canada, Japan, and climate-vulnerable Pacific Island states are among 47 countries rallying support for a charge on the international shipping sector’s greenhouse gas emissions, documents reviewed

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Will Marshall Islands sign the TPNW nuclear ban treaty?

The two teams lined up face to face. Students from the College of Marshall Islands (CMI) and the Majuro campus of the University of the South Pacific (USP) squared off in a mock debate: should the Marshall Islands sign

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Bill to fund U.S. Government includes money to counter China in Pacific 

U.S. congressional negotiators released a bill Sunday that would fund key parts of the government through the rest of the fiscal year, which began in October 2023.  Among provisions in the appropriations package are

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RMI President questions US commitment on COFA funding

Republic of Marshall Islands President, Hilda Heine, has questioned whether the Marshalls have reached a crossroads in its relationship with the United States. As Marshallese gathered to commemorate Nuclear Victims

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Tackling nuclear legacies, 70 years after Bravo

On 1 March 1954, the US government exploded a thermonuclear weapon on Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands, codenamed Bravo. The test had an explosive yield of nearly 15 megatons, a thousand times more powerful than the

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U.S. Senate fails to add Compact Funds to aid package

A last-minute bipartisan effort to add key funding aimed at countering China in the Pacific has failed in the U.S. Senate even as a US$95 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan moved forward. A renewal of

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Micronesian leaders warn ‘competitive political actors’ exploiting delays in U.S. funding

Palau, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands, which occupy a militarily strategic expanse of the western Pacific, have warned that delays to U.S. financial assistance have created opportunities for “competitive

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Huge rogue waves smash into remote U.S. military base in Pacific

“Gigantic” waves swamped parts of a key U.S. military facility in the middle of the Pacific Ocean last weekend, causing damage that will take months to repair, according to a U.S. Army report. A video posted on X

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Hilda Heine inaugurated as Marshall Islands President

Marshall Islands’ President, Hilda Heine has been inaugurated in Majuro in the presence of dignitaries from across Micronesia. President Heine was re-elected on 27 December last year for a second term as the

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Taiwan congratulates Hilda Heine as RMI new President

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has extended Taipei’s congratulations to new Marshall Islands’ President, Hilda Heine. Heine assumed the presidency following a vote among newly sworn-in legislators

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Heine elected as Marshall Islands President

Marshall Islands has elected its 10th President, Dr Hilda Heine. Dr Heine received 17 votes when the Marshall Islands Nitijela voted yesterday, just one more than outgoing President, David Kabua. It is Dr Heine’s

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AOSIS Ministers express serious concerns over COP28 Global Stocktake draft text

The Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Chairs Minister, Cedric Schuster of Samoa, Monday voiced deep worries regarding the process and content of the document in reaction to the COP28 Presidency’s draft text on

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Marshall Islands climate envoy Tina Stege stands firm against weakening of SIDS’s voice at COP28

The climate envoy of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) Tina Stege, Saturday expressed grave concerns about attempts by certain countries to weaken the emphasis on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) at the

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Marshall Islands election show big shakeup in parliament

The Marshall Islands domestic election result shows that as many as one-third of all members of parliament are likely to change when the body is sworn in during early January. But the Marshall Islands domestic vote

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Low-key election campaign in Marshalls belies vote importance

Marshall Islanders go to the polls Monday 20 November following what may have been the quietest election campaign in the 44-years of constitutional government. But the muted campaign — there are no political parties

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Fiji among 14 that oppose truce

Fiji was amongst 14 countries that opposed a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian truce in Gaza while 120 countries voted in favour. The Assembly adopted resolution titled “Protection of civilians and

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Google to run internet cables to Pacific islands in Australia-U.S. deal

Alphabet’s Google will run undersea cables powering internet access to at least eight far-flung Pacific Ocean nations under a joint U.S.-Australian deal set to be announced on Wednesday, according to a U.S.

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