Oceania
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Features
The Pacific Way
FORUM Staff Mutual respect, dialogue and consensus are hallmarks of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) and distinguish the organization among enduring partnerships worldwide. Sixteen nations and two French territories, with populations ranging from Australia’s 27 million to Niue’s 2,000, address matters affecting the region, which comprises nearly 20% of Earth’s surface. The PIF began as a consortium of seven island…
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Features
Trained, Prepared, Forward
FORUM Staff A helicopter hovers within arm’s reach of a Soldier astride a howitzer. Dust and rain lash New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) and United States Army personnel under storm-darkened skies and thundering aircraft at Helemano Military Reservation, Hawaii. Sling load training, one facet of the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC) drills occurring across the archipelago’s eight main islands, demonstrates…
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Features
Side by Side
In mid-2023, the tents and trailers at the Australian Defence Force’s Townsville Field Training Area in northeast Queensland became temporary homes to troops from around the world — a place to train, learn, and share skills and experiences, while reinforcing the commitment of Allies and Partners to regional security and stability. Talisman Sabre, the biennial Australia-United States exercise first held in…
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Features
Securing Papua New Guinea’s Future
Tom Abke The security challenges facing Papua New Guinea (PNG) have evolved in recent decades, according to Elias Wohengu, PNG’s foreign affairs secretary. Thirty years ago, the threat of climate change to national security didn’t occur to him, Wohengu said at a panel discussion called “Security and PNG’s National Interest.” But today it has become self-evident. Confronting emerging and conventional…
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Across The Region
Australia, Philippines Upgrade Strategic Ties
Australia and the Philippines agreed in September 2023 to hold annual defense ministers’ meetings as the nations upgraded bilateral ties to a strategic partnership amid rising security challenges in the region, including in the South China Sea. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed a strategic partnership agreement with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during his trip to Manila, the first…
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Across The Region
Fiji, France Agree to Expand Defense Cooperation
Fiji and France reached a defense agreement in August 2023 covering technology research, training, logistical support, and emergency and humanitarian assistance. The Status of Forces Agreement “provides a framework for cooperation and assistance through military exchanges and the sharing of expertise between the Republic of Fiji Military Force and the Defence Force of the French Republic,” the Fiji Prime Minister’s…
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Climate
Sponsor An Ocean?
Story and photos by The Associated Press The tiny Pacific island nation of Niue has devised a novel plan to protect its vast and pristine territorial waters. It will get sponsors to pay. Under the plan, launched by Niue Premier Dalton Tagelagi in September 2023, individuals or companies can pay $148 to protect 1 square kilometer of ocean from threats…
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Across The Region
Palau-U.S. Agreement Bolsters Island Nation’s Maritime Enforcement
A Palau-United States agreement authorizes U.S. ships to unilaterally enforce maritime regulations in the Pacific island nation’s exclusive economic zone. The August 2023 move followed the Palau president’s request for Washington’s help to deter “unwanted activities” by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). “This agreement helps Palau monitor our exclusive economic zone, protect against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and deter…
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Departments
Power of Partnership
FORUM STAFF | PHOTOS BY THE AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE DEPARTMENT In the nearly two decades since Australian and United States service members participated in the inaugural Talisman Sabre, the biennial exercise has flourished into a multinational, continent-spanning endeavor. The record-setting 10th iteration in mid-2023 encompassed 34,500 personnel from 13 participating nations, as well as four observer nations, conducting drills across all…
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Conflicts - Tensions
Fit for Purpose
FORUM Staff | Photos by AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE DEPARTMENT The mission was critical; the timeline telling: Conduct a comprehensive review of Australia’s defense strategy and force posture — perhaps the nation’s most consequential such analysis in more than three decades — and issue recommendations within six months, rather than the 18 months typical for such an undertaking. “Now that’s a tall…
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