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The Latest Breaking News from South Pacific

China's diplomatic gambit heralds new 'Battle for the Pacific'

Sydney (AFP) - A 10-day South Pacific island-hopping tour by China's top diplomat focused world attention on a usually overlooked region, opened a new front in Beijing's quest for global influence and challenged decades of Western primacy.

AFP

French to send fact finding mission to New Caledonia to examine possible future

The Law Commission of the French Senate has announced that a fact-finding mission will travel to New Caledonia, a French colony in the South Pacific, to investigate the future institutional role of the island and its relationship with France and other French overseas territories.

Radio France Internationale

China says not competing for influence in South Pacific

Port Vila (Vanuatu) (AFP) - China has insisted it has "no intention to compete" for influence in the South Pacific as foreign minister Wang Yi and his Australian counterpart Penny Wong again jetted around the region Wednesday on duelling diplomatic charm offensives.

AFP

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Chinese foreign minister's Pacific tour continues in Vanuatu

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has arrived in Vanuatu for talks as he continues his regional island-hopping tour two days after failing to ink an ambitious deal with 10 South Pacific nations

The Independent UK

South Pacific island nations remain wary of Beijing

BEIJING/JAKARTA -- Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday met with his counterparts from 10 South Pacific island nations in Fiji. According to Australian media, the Chinese government presented a draft agreement that includes strengthening security cooperation, but the parties failed to reach consensus because of opposition by at…

The Japan News/Yomiuri

Moving to strengthen ties with Pacific isles

The United States and Australia are moving to counter China's active engagement with South Pacific island nations.

The Japan News/Yomiuri

China's foreign minister arrives in Tonga on Pacific tour

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in Tonga on Tuesday as he continued his regional island-hopping tour a day after failing to ink an ambitious deal with 10 South Pacific nations

The Independent UK

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China, Pacific islands fail to reach consensus on security pact

Wang Yi urges Pacific region not to be ‘too anxious’ about China’s aims after failing to agree on a security deal.

Al Jazeera

Pacific 'very positive' on Australian re-engagement: PM

Sydney (AFP) - Australia's newly elected prime minister has said Pacific leaders have been "very positive" about his government's renewed engagement, even as Beijing continues its diplomatic blitz across the increasingly contested region.

AFP

Samoa signs 'collaboration' pact with China

Samoa signed a bilateral agreement with China on Saturday, promising “greater collaboration” as Beijing’s foreign minister continues a South Pacific tour that has sparked concern among Western allies.

Bangkok Post

Samoa signs China agreement amid South Pacific push

Apia (Samoa) (AFP) - Samoa signed a bilateral agreement with China on Saturday, promising "greater collaboration" as Beijing's foreign minister continues a tour of the South Pacific that has sparked concern among Western allies.

AFP

Sci-Five | The Hindu Science Quiz: On rain

Test your Science quotient with this quiz

The Hindu

China criticizes US as tensions rise in South Pacific

China is criticizing a speech by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that focused on relations between the world's top two economic powers

The Independent UK

China's Pacific plan seen as regional strategic game-changer

When China signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands in April it raised concerns from the U.S. and its allies that Beijing may be seeking a military outpost in the South Pacific, an area of traditional American naval dominance

The Independent UK

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Asharq Al-Awsat

Australia Urges Pacific Nations to Shun China Security Deals

Australia urged South Pacific nations to spurn China's attempts to extend its security reach across the region Friday, seeking to fend off a high-level charm offensive by Beijing. Foreign Minister Penny Wong was in Fiji on her first solo visit, seeking to woo island states after the Solomon Islands took…

AFP

Western powers sound alarm on China plan for South Pacific

Honiara (AFP) - Western powers sounded the alarm Thursday over leaked plans to dramatically expand China's security and economic reach in the South Pacific, in what one regional leader called a thinly veiled effort to lock island states into "Beijing's orbit".

The Independent UK

China's foreign minister starts Pacific tour in the Solomons

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and a 20-strong delegation have arrived in the Solomon Islands at the start of an eight-nation tour that comes amid growing concerns about Beijing’s military and financial ambitions in the South Pacific region

The Independent UK

EXPLAINER: What's at stake for China on South Pacific visit?

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is visiting South Pacific nations amid concerns over Beijing's growing military and diplomatic presence in the region

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AFP

China offers South Pacific nations security, free trade agreements

Honiara (AFP) - China has put forward plans to dramatically expand security and economic cooperation with South Pacific nations, with one regional leader calling it a thinly veiled effort to lock them into "Beijing's orbit" and Washington warning against "shadowy" deals.

AFP

China, Australia launch duelling South Pacific charm offensives

Honiara (AFP) - Chinese and Australian foreign ministers will launch duelling charm offensives in the South Pacific Thursday, as Beijing and the West jostle for influence in the strategically significant region.

Reuters

New Zealand extends troop deployments to Solomon Islands

New Zealand on Wednesday said it would extend the New Zealand Defence Force's deployment to the Solomon Islands until at least May next year, amid concerns among Western allies about China's growing presence in the South Pacific.

Caixin Global

China’s Foreign Minister to Visit South Pacific Island Nations After Security Pact With Solomon Islands

Wang Yi’s trip will take him to the Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and East Timor

The Guardian - UK

Watch out for the Sharkcano! What happens when an underwater volcano erupts?

An active crater in the South Pacific – in which hammerhead and silky sharks have been found – is about to blow. Could this be a real-life sequel to the sci-fi hit Sharknado?

Newsroom.co.nz

NZ's foreign policy turnaround: New Australian Govt will peg back tensions

The war in Ukraine has moved New Zealand into closer alignment with its Western partners - but the election of a new Govt in Australia shows the needs for an independent NZ path in the Pacific.

The Independent UK

Former Australian envoy says Australia's lost Pacific trust

A former Australian envoy to the Solomons Islands has accused Australia’s government of losing the trust of South Pacific island countries and of ushering in greater Chinese influence

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