Juggling competing Pacific narratives

Two narratives dominated geopolitical discussions of the Pacific islands in 2018 – that of the Blue Pacific and the Indo-Pacific – but what does the future hold?

A turbulent year in Pacific politics

After decades of neglect, the Pacific region has been ‘rediscovered’ by strategists in Australia, the United States and elsewhere as the military threat and economic reality of China continues to grow.

The SMART way to help Pacific Islands lead climate action

The new SMART tool helps policymakers quickly identify potential co-benefits and trade-offs that need to be considered in planning to mitigate the devastating effects of climate change in the Pacific region.

The purposes of the Pacific pivot

A ‘Pacific pivot’ that can marry Australia’s strategic needs with the fundamental needs of Pacific peoples will be a policy which benefits all stakeholders and so ensure enduring results.

Businesses can help Australia’s step-up in the Pacific

It’s time to build a more deliberate and far-reaching partnership between government and business to further Australia’s interests in the Pacific.

Government assistance and e-commerce boost Pacific exports

New data shows the adoption of digital technology is boosting exports, and as APEC brings leaders to the Pacific, export confidence is high throughout the region.

Morrison’s Pacific pivot

The Prime Minister has outlined a practical and imaginative new strategy on issues critical to our region’s security, prosperity and people-to-people connections.

Low-cost tsunami warning system could help protect Pacific islanders

A simple and low cost early warning system could help prevent deaths in regions vulnerable to tsunamis after successful trials in Vanuatu last month.

Shorten proposes investment bank to help Pacific nations’ development

Bill Shorten has hinted that Labor would set up a government-backed infrastructure investment bank to promote concessional financing for nation-building projects in the Pacific.

Connectivity is about people rather than technology

People in the Pacific have connected across its vast expanse for millennia, and new digital cables will help bring people together to create ‘One Pacific’ over time, strengthening traditional ties and human relationships rather than replacing them.

Australia steps up its Pacific pivot

Australian strategic interest in the Pacific islands is reaching heights not seen since the international intervention in the Solomon Islands in 2003, thanks to increased concern about China’s growing presence in the region.

Passports remain a ticket to corruption in the Pacific Islands

Pacific island countries have sold passports to foreigners since the early 1980s and new ventures to raise revenue risk undermining the region’s domestic probity and international security.