Kiribati
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Conflicts - Tensions
Kiribati criticizes Beijing’s ICBM launch
Reuters The Blue Pacific nation of Kiribati criticized the People’s Republic of China (PRC) for launching an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in late September 2024, saying the Pacific is not “isolated pockets of ocean” and that it “does not welcome” Beijing’s action. Kiribati, which has a maritime exclusive economic zone of 3.6 million square kilometers, has ties to Beijing, including…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Allies, Partners continue push against IUU fishing
FORUM Staff Seven years after the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed June 5 the International Day for the Fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing, Indo-Pacific Allies and Partners continue to lead the battle against an illicit activity that the U.N. says has “major implications for the conservation and management of ocean resources, as well as the food security…
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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
Long-standing shiprider agreements boost Free and Open Indo-Pacific, protect EEZs
FORUM Staff The shiprider program, the successful multilateral fisheries surveillance and law enforcement effort in the Indo-Pacific, traces its origins to the late 1980s when the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency recommended member countries develop a reciprocal enforcement agreement. The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Harriet Lane partners with local police, fisheries agencies and other officials in Fiji,…
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Global Commons
Australia, Japan, U.S. to fund undersea cable connection in Micronesia
The Associated Press Japan announced in early June 2023 that it has joined Australia and the United States in a $95 million undersea cable project that will connect East Micronesia island nations to improve digital networks in the Indo-Pacific. The approximately 2,250-kilometer cable will connect the state of Kosrae in the Federated States of Micronesia, Tarawa in Kiribati and Nauru…
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Key Issues
U.S. Pacific strategy heralds new engagement in region
The Associated Press The United States in late September 2022 unveiled a Pacific strategy to bolster U.S. engagement with more than a dozen island nations on issues including climate change and maritime security, while pledging to expand its diplomatic presence in the region. U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration released its strategy, as well as plans for U.S. $810 million in…
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Indo-Pacific
U.S. Pacific strategy heralds new engagement in region
The Associated Press The United States in late September 2022 unveiled a Pacific strategy to bolster U.S. engagement with more than a dozen island nations on issues including climate change and maritime security, while pledging to expand its diplomatic presence in the region. U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration released its strategy, as well as plans for U.S. $810 million in…
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