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Category: South Pacific

Why Chinese Lending to Pacific Island Countries Has Steadily Declined in Recent Years

Chinese lending to Pacific Island Countries (PICs) is now at its lowest level in 15 years, according to new data published by the Australian think tank Lowy Institute. The findings may come as a surprise, given China's heightened ...

Solomon Islands Explains It Wanted China References Stripped From U.S.-Pacific Island Countries’ Accord

The Solomon Islands caused a bit of a stir last month at a summit in Washington, D.C. when it refused to sign an initial draft of an accord between the U.S. and more than a dozen Pacific nations. Now, we know why.

Fox News Blames Biden for China in the Solomon Islands 

U.S. concerns about Chinese influence in the Solomon Islands have crossed a notable rhetorical red line: it is now a talking point on Fox News. This turns it from an obscure geopolitical spat to a topic in the mainstream Republican-Democrat culture war. Fox hosted the ...

Tuvalu Minister Pulls out of U.N. Ocean Conference After China Blocks Its Taiwanese Delegates

Simon Kofe, the foreign minister of Tuvalu, pulled out of the United Nations Ocean Conference opening in Portugal on Monday after China blocked the participation of three Taiwanese included in the tiny Pacific island nation's delegation list, according to Radio New Zealand. (REUTERS)

U.S. and Its Allies in Asia Form New Group to Counter China’s Rising Influence in the South Pacific

The United States formed yet another coalition with a catchy tagline intended to push back against China's growing clout, this time in the South Pacific.  The United States, Japan, Australia, Britain, and New Zealand announced ...

Analysis from Cobus van Staden

Top State Department Official Says China’s Debt Relief Offer to Sri Lanka is “Not Enough”

Another senior U.S. diplomat has accused China of not doing enough to resolve Sri Lanka’s debt renegotiation, a sign that the island’s financial crisis is increasingly being framed geopolitically.
U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Victoria Nuland said: “What China has offered so far is not enough. We need to see credible and specific assurances that they will meet the IMF standard of debt relief.”

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China’s New Ambitions in the South Pacific

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's recent South Pacific tour put the region in play as the latest venue for Great Power political rivalries. But even though the ten Pacific Island Countries (PIC) are among the smallest in the world, they came ...