Category Archives: Micronesia

Mapped: the vast network of security deals spanning the Pacific, and what it means

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Guardian analysis shows web of agreements between Pacific countries and Australia, US and China, as experts raise concerns over rising militarisation

As competition for influence in the Pacific region intensifies, analysis by the Guardian has mapped a vast network of security, policing and defence agreements between the island countries and foreign partners – leading to concerns about militarisation of the region.

The Guardian examined agreements and partnerships covering security, defence and policing with the 10 largest Pacific countries by population. Australia remains the dominant partner in the region – accounting for more than half the deals identified – followed by New Zealand, the US and China.

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Fishermen saved by ‘Help’ message on same tiny island where ‘SOS’ saved three others

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Three rescued in the Pacific after making message in the sand with palm fronds, just as another group had done four years prior

Three fishermen stranded on a remote Pacific atoll for more than a week were rescued after spelling out the word “Help” in the sand using giant palm fronds.

A crew from the US Coast Guard cutter Oliver Henry plucked the men, in their 40s, from Pikelot atoll, part of the Federated States of Micronesia, to safety on Tuesday after their message was spotted from the air.

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Micronesia president says US beefing up military capabilities in the Pacific country

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Wesley Simina says the US is ‘well advanced’ in plans for $400m airport upgrade in Yap, amid rising tensions with China in the region

The US is considering military projects across the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) as it pushes ahead with plans for a $400m airport upgrade in the country to boost defence capabilities in the Pacific, President Wesley Simina said.

The region is of growing strategic importance to the US amid a battle for influence with China.

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Congress ‘gradually destroying’ US relations with Pacific ally, Marshall Islands president warns

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Hilda Heine says US funding delays damage relationship with the Pacific nation as lawmakers say hold-up delivers a ‘gift’ to China

Hilda Heine, the president of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, has warned relations with the US are “gradually being destroyed by party politics” as Congress delays approval of crucial funding for the Pacific nation.

US lawmakers have not yet passed funding packages agreed in 2023 with the Marshall Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), in a move some argue is opening the door to China to build its influence in the Pacific region.

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Pacific Island leaders warn US failure to pass funding bill opens door to China

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The Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau say Congress needs to approve fresh support announced by Joe Biden

Pacific leaders have warned the US government that a delay in approving funding packages for the region threatens to play into the hands of Beijing, which is seeking to shift allegiances in the Pacific and draw away as many of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies as possible.

In 2023 the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Marshall Islands (RMI) and Palau agreed to renew 20-year funding programs with the United States. The agreements, known as Compacts of Free Association (COFA), see Washington provide economic assistance to the Pacific nations in return for exclusive military access to large and strategic areas of the Pacific.

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US to sign pacts with Micronesia and PNG as Washington seeks to counter China in Pacific

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Formal signings to take place in Papua New Guinea next week when Joe Biden holds summit with Pacific leaders

The US is set to sign strategic pacts with Papua New Guinea and Micronesia next week, as Washington seeks to shore up support among Pacific island countries to counter competition from China

Papua New Guinea’s prime minister, Jamas Marape, confirmed that his country’s agreements with the US would be signed when Joe Biden becomes the first sitting US president to visit the Pacific nation on 22 May.

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Outgoing president of Micronesia accuses China of bribery, threats and interference

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In his letter, Panuelo openly canvassed the country switching its diplomatic recognition from Beijing to Taipei

China is engaged in “political warfare” in the Pacific, the outgoing president of the Federated States of Micronesia has alleged in an excoriating letter, accusing Beijing officials of bribing elected officials in Micronesia, and even “direct threats against my personal safety”.

Two months before his term as president expires, David Panuelo’s letter alleged China was preparing for conflict over the island of Taiwan, and that its goal in interfering in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) was to render the country neutral in any potential Pacific war.

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Smiles and unity at the Pacific Islands Forum mask tough questions shelved for another day

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While leaders presented a picture of harmony, more vexing topics like Australia’s fossil fuel ambitions and China were kicked down the road

At the close of the Pacific Islands Forum the leaders emerged from their retreat smiling, cut a giant cake with a sword and then, in an impromptu moment of diplomatic bonhomie, posed for a selfie after Anthony Albanese whipped out his phone, Ellen DeGeneres style.

It was, quite literally, a picture of harmony.

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CSIRO joins deep-sea mining project in Pacific as islands call for industry halt

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Agency to lead consortium in scheme targeting battery materials while conservationists say Australia on ‘wrong side of debate’

Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, has agreed to work with a controversial deep-sea mining project in the Pacific as a fourth island nation joins a call for a moratorium on the industry.

CSIRO will lead a consortium of scientists from Australia and New Zealand to help the Metals Company (TMC) develop an environmental management plan for its project, which is backed by the Nauru government.

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Kiribati withdraws from Pacific Islands Forum in blow to regional body

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President says it will not be attending forum because of failure to address concerns of Micronesian countries

The key diplomatic body in the Pacific has been dealt a devastating blow on the eve of its first in-person meeting since the pandemic, as Kiribati announced it would be withdrawing from the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF).

The Pacific has become a site of intense geostrategic competition, as a result of increased interest from China, and Kiribati’s withdrawal will weaken the forum at a time when Pacific regionalism in the face of fierce geopolitical attention has never been more important.

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Earliest Pacific seafarers were matrilocal society, study suggests

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DNA analysis of 164 individuals from 2,800 to 300 years ago shows men would move to be with their wives

The world’s earliest seafarers who set out to colonise remote Pacific islands nearly 3,000 years ago were a matrilocal society with communities organised around the female lineage, analysis of ancient DNA suggests.

The research, based on genetic sequencing of 164 ancient individuals from 2,800 to 300 years ago, suggested that some of the earliest inhabitants of islands in Oceania had population structures in which women almost always remained in their communities after marriage, while men left their mother’s community to live with that of their wife. This pattern is strikingly different from that of patrilocal societies, which appeared to be the norm in ancient populations in Europe and Africa.

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Deal proposed by China would dramatically expand security influence in Pacific

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Leaked copy of draft shows Beijing wants more involvement in policing, cybersecurity and marine mapping

China is pursuing a sweeping regional economic security deal with Pacific nations that would dramatically expand its influence and reach into those countries, in a pact that has western countries and some Pacific leaders deeply worried.

The wide-ranging deal lays out China’s vision for a much closer relationship with the Pacific, especially on security matters, with China proposing it would be involved in training police, cybersecurity, sensitive marine mapping and gaining greater access to natural resources.

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I had death threats and my tires slashed for my reporting. Many journalists in the Pacific face huge dangers | Joyce McClure

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Freedom of the press might be included in some constitutions of Pacific countries, but it often only works in theory

I spent five years as the lone journalist on the remote Pacific island of Yap. During that time I was harassed, spat at, threatened with assassination and warned that I was being followed. The tyres on my car were slashed late one night.

There was also pressure on the political level. The chiefs of the traditional Council of Pilung (COP) asked the state legislature to throw me out of the country as a “persona non grata” claiming that my journalism “may be disruptive to the state environment and/or to the safety and security of the state”.

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One-third of people in Pacific paid a bribe in the last year, says corruption report

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Survey of more than 6,000 people by Transparency International is the most comprehensive look at corruption in the region to date

One in three people across the Pacific Islands region have paid a bribe when using a public service in the last year, while a quarter of people have been offered a bribe for their vote in the last five years, according to a report by Transparency International.

The findings for the watchdog group are based on a survey of more than 6,000 people in 10 countries and territories, and is the most comprehensive look at corruption ever carried out in the region.

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Sea of resilience: how the Pacific fought against Covid

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A new documentary shows that while the health impacts of the pandemic have - so far - been largely avoided, the effects of isolation on families, communities, and livelihoods has been profound

Faith, family, and a little bit of farming.

The Pacific’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic has been one of self-reliance and resistance: to turn to its communities and churches, its lands and seas.

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‘Marginalising our own brothers and sisters’: the disrespect Micronesia has been shown is a tragedy for the Pacific | Surangel Whipps Jr, President of Palau

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Micronesia had no choice to but to abandon the Pacific Islands Forum after being ‘thoroughly and publicly disregarded’, the President of Palau writes

What becomes of an organisation when it disregards one-third of its membership? What happens when “we” stops being inclusive?

As the eldest of four, I have always felt responsible for the safety, security, and well-being of my siblings. In my family, “I” has always been synonymous with “we”, the collective, being one inclusive family and ensuring no one is left out. This is what I understand to be the Palauan way; this is what I understand to be the Pacific Way.

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SOS message in sand saves sailors stranded on Pacific island – video

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Footage from the US Coast Guard shows the rescue of three missing sailors from the tiny Pikelot Island in the Pacific. The men were stranded there when their boat ran out of fuel and strayed off course but were saved after a rescue team spotted their giant SOS message written in the sand

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Missing sailors stranded on Pacific island saved by giant SOS in the sand

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Three men stuck on tiny Pikelot island after their boat ran out of fuel and strayed off course spotted by Australian and US military aircraft

Three Micronesian sailors stranded on a remote Pacific island have been found alive and well after a rescue team spotted their giant SOS message written into the sand on a beach.

Australian and US military aircraft found the three men on tiny Pikelot island, nearly 200km west of where they’d set off. Rescuers said they were “in good condition” with no significant injuries.

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No injuries as jet lands off coast of Micronesia

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No serious injuries were reported among those traveling on a Boeing 737 that landed about 150 yards short of a runway off the coast of Micronesia, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Add Airlines as an interest to stay up to date on the latest Airlines news, video, and analysis from ABC News.