Australia sends expert teams to Fiji as Chinese state-backed hackers attack Pacific Islands Forum
The Australian government sent expert teams to Fiji this year to help the Pacific’s top regional body after its networks were infiltrated by Chinese state-backed hackers, the ABC has learned. The cyber attack on
Forum opens with songs of resilience, followed by earthquake
As delegates gathered in Nuku’alofa for the annual Pacific Islands Forum, the new Indoor Stadium at Tonga High School resonated with song from hundreds of school students, at Monday’s official opening. Soon after
Opinion: Pacific justice is a shared responsibility
By Kate Schuetze, Amnesty International, Acting Deputy Regional Director for Research This coming week will see a crucial moment for states and territories in the Pacific to express their views on challenges the region
Transformative Resilient Pasifiki: Exploring the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders meeting theme
The theme for the 53rd Pacific Island Forum Leaders Meeting is Transformative Resilient Pasifiki: Build Better Now. And this week that theme prompted Tongan journalists who were undergoing training in preparation for
Outgoing Forum Chair Mark Brown reflects on challenging times
“We’ve been mindful that our region is of great interest from a geopolitical perspective over the last few years or so,” says Prime Minister of Cook Islands Mark Brown. “But the security issues that are seen by
Pacific Civil Society Forum to launch during 53rd Leaders Meeting
The Pacific Civil Society Forum will host a Pacific People’s Forum alongside the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga from 26 – 30 August, with its theme “Pikipiki Hama Kae Vaevae Manava.”.
The Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting: Why does it matter?
The 53rd Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting (PIFLM53) kicks off next week in Nukualofa, and it has some Tongans asking what is its purpose, and what are the benefits of this annual event? Director for Governance and
Elon Musk invited to Pacific Island Leaders meeting amid Tonga’s internet crisis
Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla, has been invited to attend the 53rd Pacific Island Leaders Meeting, scheduled from 26-30 August, 2024. The invitation reportedly comes from the Tongan government,
Opinion: Free(r) movement at the Forum
The annual Pacific Islands Forum Economic Ministers Meeting (FEMM) always has a wide-ranging agenda. This year the FEMM, which was held at the start of August in Suva, endorsed the now-finalised but yet-to-be-released
Guam and American Samoa poised for Forum Associate membership
The Pacific Islands Forum is set to welcome Guam and American Samoa as Associate Members, following a strong recommendation from the Forum Foreign Ministers Meeting Friday. Incumbent Forum Chair and Cook Islands Prime
Forum Troika set for high-stakes New Caledonia mission
Incumbent Pacific Islands Forum Chair and Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown has confirmed that a high-level Troika delegation will visit New Caledonia before the end of August. The mission, which has received
Pacific resilience fund needs US$380m in two years’ to reach half-billion goal
Tonga has the backing of Pacific economic ministers to host the regional community resilience financing facility. The Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) was endorsed by the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders to
Diplomat reflects on Vanuatu independence and future
More than 500 Vanuatu citizens in Fiji, comprising mainly tertiary students gathered at the High Commissioner’s residence in Suva this week to commemorate their country’s 44th independence anniversary. Vanuatu’s
Japan’s nuclear wastewater discharge not a breach of Rarotonga Treaty, says Cook Islands PM
Cook Islands Prime Minister and Forum Chairman Mark says that Japan’s discharge of treated nuclear wastewater into the Pacific Ocean does not violate the Rarotonga Treaty. During his visit to Tokyo last week, PM Brown
Waqa takes the wheel at the Forum
Nearing the end of his term as Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum, Henry Puna travelled to Rarotonga in May and was feted by Mark Brown, Prime Minister of Cook Islands and the current Forum Chair. As the
‘Talanoa’ key to Forum’s seabed mining approach
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, the Pacific Islands Forum outgoing chair, told the media in May that one of the outcomes of the Leaders meeting in Rarotonga last year on the issue was a “talanoa” (a Pacific
Forum welcomes appointment of Deputy Secretary General, Desna Solofa
The Pacific Islands Forum has announced the appointment of Desna Solofa as the Deputy Secretary General – Governance, effective 24 June 2024. Solofa joins the Forum from the Government of Samoa, where she was the
Indonesian President Widodo keen to step up cooperation with Fiji
Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) pushed for the intensification of mutually beneficial cooperation between Indonesia and Fiji during a bilateral meeting with the President of Fiji, Williame Maivalili
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
Tonga to build 200 prefab houses for PIF leaders meeting as accommodation falls short
The Tongan Government plans to build 200 houses for the Pacific Forum leaders meeting in August, as accommodation falls short, the Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku told a media in Nuku’alofa. Tonga will host
Forget the past, says Puna
“I don’t want to live in the past and I’m sure the leaders don’t want to live in the past. We’ve moved on from that and we want to move forward,” said outgoing Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum
Negotiations at COP28 hit roadblock as fossil fuel phase-out language faces opposition
On the last day of negotiations at COP28, Karlos Moresi Lee, the Pacific Islands Forum Programme Adviser for Resilient Development Finance, discussed the challenges faced by negotiators from the Alliance of Small Island