Trump’s Pacific own goal

The second Trump administration’s gutting of key international development agencies has severely undermined its ostensible goal of combating Chinese influence in the Pacific, so what can it do to repair its regional strategy?

Help the Pacific to help itself

As the USA withdraws, the remaining democratic allies of Pacific island countries can advance both humanitarian and political interests by prioritising initiatives that are Pacific-led, resilience-based and – ideally -Pacific-owned.

Promoting the Pacific Response Group

As the current host of the Pacific Response Group and the country with the largest regional footprint, Australia should take the lead in promoting the organisation through diplomatic channels and encourage other partners to do so where possible.

China eyes Pacific seabed mining

The seabed is now the frontline of the unfolding strategic competition in the Pacific and if Australia fails to act, it won’t just fail to shape the regional security order needed to secure its undersea security interests; it will be culpable in its collapse.

Strive to fight disease in PNG

Partners from the Burnet Institute, the Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research, National Department of Health and the University of Papua New Guinea are working to understand how to help local healthcare workers improve their surveillance of, and response to, vector-borne diseases in Papua New Guinea.

Power in the Pacific

President Trump’s ‘protection racket’ diplomacy won’t help arrest China’s increasing economic, diplomatic and military foothold in the Pacific.

Trump’s Pacific folly

USAID cuts and tariffs will harm the United States’ reputation in the Pacific more than they will harm the region itself.

Australia can take USAID’s place in the Pacific islands

The shutdown of USAID has been an enormous hit to US soft power and its ability to counter China in the Pacific but the worst outcomes can be avoided through the intervention of Australia and its allies.

The future of Australian foreign aid

Australia’s Federal budget has maintained its foreign aid spending, unlike the USA and the UK, but the future remains precarious.

Cold war in warm waters

As Australia prepares for a national election in May, China’s Pacific ambitions are again making headlines.

The Pacific water shortage

Hydrology experts at Flinders University are calling for urgent investigations into the operation of bore-fields that access fresh groundwater on Pacific islands, including Kiribati, where rising sea levels are already putting local water supplies at risk.

Propaganda in the Pacific

Disinformation from hostile foreign states aims to influence opinions foreign policy in the Pacific, and there are signs it is working.