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China reclaimed its status as the second-largest bilateral donor to Pacific island countries (after Australia) following a pandemic lull, supplanting the United States with a surge in official development financing, loans and grants, according to findings published in a Lowy Institute report on Nov. 19.

China, Pacific Islands: Beijing Supplants U.S. as Second-Largest Bilateral Donor

Samoa

Federated States of Micronesia

Fiji

Marshall Islands

Nauru

New Zealand

Palau

Papua New Guinea

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The Pacific Islands Forum, or PIF, endorsed the Pacific Policing Initiative, a $271 million initiative to establish four regional police training centers in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Micronesia over five years, Nikkei Asia reported on Aug. 28.

Australia, Pacific Islands: Summit Produces Regional Policing Agreement

Japan

Austria

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

Capping the 10th triennial Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting, the 18-member Pacific Island Forum, or PIF, and Japan issued a declaration centered on climate change, maritime defense, trade and technology cooperation, Nikkei Asia reported on July 18.

Japan, Pacific Islands: Summit Produces Declaration on Maritime Security, Trade and Climate Cooperation

The United States is backing the construction of the Central Pacific Cable, a planned undersea internet cable covering thousands of miles that will link U.S. territories American Samoa and Guam before extending to 10 Pacific Island countries and territories, Reuters reported on Sept. 27.

U.S., Pacific Islands: Washington Backs New Undersea Cable Network in Pacific

Kiribati's government announced that it will rejoin the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), the region's most important political and economic policy organization, in 2023, Benar News reported Jan. 30.

Kiribati: Island Nation Will Rejoin Pacific Islands Forum

Kiribati withdrew from the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) one day before the PIF was scheduled to discuss key regional issues and a proposed 10-nation security deal with China, Reuters reported July 11.

Kiribati: Country's Withdrawal From Pacific Islands Forum Fractures Unity

Security

U.S.-China Relations

Asia-Pacific: Among Great Powers

All bids have been denied and no contract awarded for a World Bank tender for the East Micronesia Cable system of undersea communications cables to Kiribati, Nauru, and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) amid U.S. warnings of Chinese security threats, Reuters reported June 17. 

Pacific Islands: Undersea Cable Project Delayed Amid U.S. Concerns of Chinese Interference

China and Kiribati have signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation under the Belt and Road initiative during a visit by Kiribatian President Taneti Mamau to China, Xinhua reported Jan. 6.

China, Kiribati: Countries Sign Memorandum of Understanding on BRI Cooperation

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky holds a flag during a ceremony on Ukraine's Independence Day on Aug. 24, 2023, in Kyiv, Ukraine. 

Israel-Hamas Conflict

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Gaza Cease-Fire Talks Resume, Ukraine Observes Third Post-Invasion Independence Day

Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister James Marapeand, the Cook Islands' Prime Minister Mark Brown, U.S. President Joe Biden and Kiribati's President Taneti Maamau at the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) as part of the U.S.-PIF summit at the White House on Sept. 25, 2023, in Washington, D.C.

Despite Washington's desire to strengthen ties with Pacific island nations, political constraints may leave a regional void that China is happy to fill.

Strategic Goals and Political Hurdles in the U.S. Play Tug-of-War Over the Pacific Islands

As U.S. focus turns away from the Pacific islands, other powers are starting to pay attention.

Tracking U.S. Naval Power

The U.S. and the Balance of Power

Countries like the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau enjoy a close treaty relationship with the United States, but the strategically located states are now on China's radar too.

China Sets a Course for the U.S.'s Pacific Domain

Columns

On the Road

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Malaysia

The Geopolitics of the Cook Islands

Environmental Issues

Globalization

In the remote Pacific islands, the world's crises are dulled by distance. But the plight of the Cook Islands -- a grouping of 15 islands at the heart of the South Pacific is a tiny segment of a sweeping arc that sprawls across the Pacific from the Marianas to Polynesia -- is dire. In spite of the fantasies of travelers over the centuries, these islands are not pristine utopias.

A Place Where Geopolitics Fades

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Graphics

Paris Agreement Emphasizes Shift Away From Oil

The pace of the transition will be decided by how quickly new technologies reach the developing world.

Energy

Delegates attend a plenary session at the U.N. climate change summit in Paris on Dec. 9.

The agreement signed Dec. 12 in Paris is just a small part of a broader energy transition driven by technological change.

Climate Agreement Will Only Hasten Transition Beyond Oil

_Energy

SITUATION REPORTS

China, Pacific Islands: Beijing Supplants U.S. as Second-Largest Bilateral Donor

Australia, Pacific Islands: Summit Produces Regional Policing Agreement

Japan, Pacific Islands: Summit Produces Declaration on Maritime Security, Trade and Climate Cooperation

U.S., Pacific Islands: Washington Backs New Undersea Cable Network in Pacific

Kiribati: Island Nation Will Rejoin Pacific Islands Forum

Kiribati: Country's Withdrawal From Pacific Islands Forum Fractures Unity

Pacific Islands: Undersea Cable Project Delayed Amid U.S. Concerns of Chinese Interference

China, Kiribati: Countries Sign Memorandum of Understanding on BRI Cooperation

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