• Stepping up without stamping out Pacific infrastructure

    Anthony Bergin     |      June 16, 2019

    Three simple measures could help improve Australia’s aid, commercial and security relationships with Pacific Island Nations, while encouraging development in the region.

  • Why Pacific nations play the aid game

    Steven Ratuva     |      June 13, 2019

    Pacific island nations have become skilled in playing foreign powers against each other to maximise the aid and funding they receive.

  • Our Pacific neighbours need more than kind words

    Mark Kenny     |      June 1, 2019

    Pacific countries are eager for assistance in securing their future, whether sourced from old friends like the US and Australia, or new enthusiasts like the Chinese.

  • The Pacific can be more than a ‘nursery’ for Australian exporters

    Lori Youmshajekian     |      May 8, 2019

    The Pacific Islands are a strategic playing field for Australian exporters before expanding to Asia and beyond, but Australian policymakers should also respect the economic independence of Pacific nations, according to UNSW expert Tim Harcourt.

  • Solomon Islands elections – Continuity, with change or vice versa?

    James Batley     |      April 14, 2019

    Solomon Islands has held its first general election since the end of the regional assistance mission in 2017. Although it is too early to determine the full extent of the conduct and integrity of the elections, they were peaceful and there have been some notable electoral reforms.

  • Innovation and leadership in Pacific business

    Rosie Ah Yen-Curry     |      March 4, 2019

    Rosie Ah Yen-Curry recounts her positive experience at the recent dialogue for female entrepreneurs in the Pacific held in Brisbane by the International Centre for Democratic Partnerships.

  • As Australia’s soft power in the Pacific fades, China’s voice gets louder

    Helen Vatsikopoulos     |      February 25, 2019

    Australia’s soft power is too important to be determined by vengeful payback to the ABC, or by currying favour with commercial television barons. It is about statecraft, as the influence and power of China grows.

  • Imagining Australia’s South Pacific family

    Graeme Dobell     |      February 6, 2019

    What is needed for Australia to step up engagement in the Pacific island region is a sure-footed approach that is based on a firm footing of mutual respect and partnership.

  • A better way to stay connected with the South Pacific

    Geoff Heriot     |      January 31, 2019

    DFAT’s new Office of the Pacific is being established to provide whole-of-government coordination, and is inviting secondments from the nation’s defence and security agencies. Hopefully, it will also reach out more widely to develop a meaningful communication strategy for Pacific engagement.

  • Juggling competing Pacific narratives

    Joanne Wallis     |      January 23, 2019

    Two narratives dominated geopolitical discussions of the Pacific islands in 2018 – that of the Blue Pacific and the Indo-Pacific – but what does the future hold?

  • A turbulent year in Pacific politics

    Tess Newton Cain     |      December 21, 2018

    After decades of neglect, the Pacific region has been ‘rediscovered’ by strategists in Australia, the United States and elsewhere as the military threat and economic reality of China continues to grow.

  • The ICDP year in review

    Tina Briggs     |      December 19, 2018

    The International Centre for Democratic Partnerships runs the Australian Government’s ‘Pacific Connect’ program to build closer relationships with emerging leaders in the Pacific. Its programme coordinator, Tina Briggs, reflects on its first full year of operations.