Tonga
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Conflicts - Tensions
Australian, island nations’ police to respond to Blue Pacific emergencies
FORUM Staff A new multinational police force based in Australia will provide security for Blue Pacific nations while also serving as a deterrent to the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) push to embed itself with law enforcement agencies in the region. The $271 million Pacific Policing Initiative, underwritten by Australia, includes a new training facility in Brisbane and up to…
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Northeast Asia
Allies, partners enhance all-domain readiness with military exercises across Indo-Pacific
FORUM Staff More than 30 allied and partner militaries deployed personnel, aircraft, ships, submarines, uncrewed vehicles and other assets across the Indo-Pacific in mid-2024. The multinational, near-simultaneous exercises Pitch Black, Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) and Valiant Shield stretched from Oceania and the Western Pacific to Northeast Asia. Tens of thousands of troops joined the all-domain training to build interoperability…
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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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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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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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Oceania
‘Olympics of war games’ enhances partner readiness, interoperability
FORUM Staff From a multinational amphibious assault to an innovative over-the-shore logistics operation and tests of lifesaving wearable technology, Talisman Sabre 2023 sharpened readiness and forged relationships among 30,000 troops from more than a dozen allied and partner nations, while demonstrating “unified resolve” to ensure Indo-Pacific peace and stability. The 10th iteration of the biennial Australia-United States exercise proved unprecedented…
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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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Global Commons
U.S., allies continue lifesaving efforts to Tonga in volcano aftermath
FORUM Staff The United States Navy’s USS Sampson participated in a multinational effort providing aid to Tonga following the January 15, 2022, eruption of the undersea volcano Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai. The explosion could be seen from space and heard as far away as Alaska. An ensuing tsunami damaged villages and resorts and was felt as far away as Japan,…
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Top Stories
Military flights assess Tonga damage after volcanic eruption
The Associated Press Australia and New Zealand sent military surveillance flights to Tonga in mid-January 2022 to assess the damage caused by a huge undersea volcanic eruption that killed at least three people in the Pacific island nation. A towering ash cloud from the January 15 eruption had prevented earlier flights. New Zealand sent essential supplies, including drinking water, on…
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