Palau seeks direct air links with PNG
One northern Pacific state has almost secured what has been a remote aviation dream shared by many of its small island neighbours – to get to its larger South Pacific island neighbours at as short a time and
Politics
Samoa
Ruling HRPP bows to growing pressure After several months of debate, secret meetings and petitions, the decision came down to the Samoan Minister of Finance, Faumuina Tiatia Faaolatane Liuga for him to heed the calls to
UN sends mission to New Caledonia
Debates over electoral rolls and alliances The United Nations has sent a delegation to New Caledonia in the lead up to crucial municipal and provincial elections as supporters and opponents of independence joust over
French Navy seized Chinese fishing boat
Maritime border dispute flares up again Sea border dispute between Vanuatu and New Caledonia has resulted in the arrest and conviction of a Chinese boat captain and members of his crew. New Caledonian maritime
Judicial shake-up in Nauru
Opposition MPs decry deportations Nauru’s Opposition has described the treatment of two of its highest judicial officers in the land as contempt for the rule of law. Opposition leader Mathew Batsiua alleged that
Fiji back from the cold?
FiMCG anticipates Fiji’s full Forum participation Fiji is coming back in from the cold. Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama’s announcement that he would step down as military commander on February 28, then on
PM Lilo on a cleanup footing
But will he have the time to complete the job? As his nation prepares for the national general election later this year, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo, is a man whose leadership is under siege. And he
Former AG convicted of public corruption
Focus now shifts to former gov’s extradition In yet another “first” for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and buoyed by a multi-year movement to rid the government of corruption, former
From Mexico to the Marshalls
Castaway survives 14-month Pacific ordeal Late in 2012, El Salvadorian fisherman Jose Salvador Alvarenga and his Mexican companion Ezequiel Cordoba left southern Mexico in a 24-foot boat for a day of shark fishing. They
At 60, legacy of Bravo still reverberates
MUnresolved issues remain to be resolved March 1 is a national holiday in the Marshall Islands marking the day the Bravo hydrogen bomb was exploded at Bikini Atoll, spewing radioactive fallout on islands around the
Dual citizenship
Govt hopes to raise over US$98m The creation of dual citizenship in Vanuatu through constitutional change has created two fiercely opposing camps in a debate that refuses to die. In one corner are the purists, led by
New benchmarks for Australian aid
Bishop announces ODA cuts and reviews As Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop joined members of the Pacific Islands Forum Ministerial Contact Group (MCG) in Suva last month, she highlighted Australia’s new
PNG launches first national security policy
Security institutions neglected: O’Neil The PNG government has chosen a new Commander for the Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF)—Colonel Gilbert Toropo, the former Commanding Officer of the 1st
Gov Inos deals with land issues
US withholds transfer of 5 offshore lands U.S. President Barack Obama signed on Sept. 18, 2013 a law conveying 3-mile submerged lands to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, only to temporarily withhold the
