Regional

Sinking islands | ‘Pacific islanders can become migrants and refugees’

The risk of sinking islands will turn citizens of Pacific nations into climate migrants and refugees. Education International president Susan Hopgood mentioned this to teachers trade unionists at the Educators for Climate Justice and Just...

Pacific islands, in spotlight, to push climate change in South Korea summit

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Pacific island leaders will meet South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul on Monday, their third summit in a week with a large economy as the region seeks stronger action on climate change as it becomes a focus of geopolitical power attention. The Pacific islands span 40 million square kilometres of...

Plastic-spewing artwork unveiled for Paris talks against waste

PARIS (Reuters) – Lobbyists Greenpeace unveiled an artwork in Paris on Saturday in the shape of a machine churning out bottles in front of an oil derrick to coincide with talks on eliminating plastic waste. Canadian artist Benjamin Von Wong said his 5-metre-high work by the River Seine showed the link between fossil fuels and...

27th May

Australian sports unite to back Indigenous constitutional recognition

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Twenty Australian sports organisations proclaimed on Friday their backing of a referendum to constitutionally recognise Indigenous people, as the country marked “Sorry Day” when it acknowledges years of injustices to Aboriginal people. Sports including cricket, golf, motorsport, netball and badminton pledged support for a proposed “Voice to Parliament”, a consultative committee that...

26th May

Australia says it cannot cancel existing PwC contracts given legal constraints

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia said on Thursday it cannot cancel existing contracts with auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which is embroiled in a scandal involving leaking confidential government tax plans to corporate clients, due to legal constraints. This comes as lawmakers have called for the cancellation of PwC Australia’s existing government contracts and a ban on it...

25th May

Netflix expands password sharing crackdown around the world

(Reuters) -Netflix Inc on Tuesday expanded its crackdown on password sharing to the United States and more than 100 other countries, alerting users that their accounts cannot be shared for free outside of their households. The streaming video pioneer has been looking for new ways to make money as it faces signs of market saturation,...

Australia, India to seek closer economic ties, critical minerals cooperation

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met Narendra Modi, his Indian counterpart, in Sydney on Wednesday to discuss regional security and economic ties and signed a migration deal to boost Indian student and business travel to Australia. Modi is visiting Australia for the first time since 2014, and two months after Albanese travelled...

Overseas Indians flock to Modi’s rally in Sydney

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Thousands of overseas Indians cheered Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a rally in one of Sydney’s biggest sporting arenas on Tuesday, a rare mass showing for a foreign leader in Australia. Modi, who is visiting Australia for the first time since 2014, will look to use his popularity among expatriate Indians to boost...

24th May

Cathay Pacific apologises after passenger alleges discrimination

HONG KONG (Reuters) -Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd apologised after a passenger accused its flight attendants of discriminating against non-English speakers, prompting China’s state media to criticise the airline for “worshipping foreigners.” Cathay said the experience of passengers travelling on its CX987 flight from the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu to Hong Kong on Sunday caused...

Working with Australia

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka met with the Australian Minister for International Development and the Pacific and Defence Industry Pat Conroy in Papua New Guinea this week. While attending the third Forum for India-Pacific Islands Co-operation (FIPIC) Summit in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, both leaders held discussions about areas of co-operation and partnership. These included...

PM Rabuka: Fiji committed to work closely with Kiribati

Fiji is committed to work closely with Kiribati, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has informed President of Kiribati Taneti Maamau. While in Papua New Guinea for the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Co-operation (FIPIC) Summit, Mr Rabuka told President Maamau on the re-establishment of the Rabi Island Council. Mr Rabuka said the adm­i­nistration was now fully oper­ational,...

PM Modi: India supports a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific

India respects your priorities and feels proud to be your development partner. This was the message from India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to representatives of the Pacific Islands Forum during the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Co-operation (FIPIC) in PNG. Mr Modi said India, like the Pacific, believed in multilateralism. “We support a free, open, and...

Drier, warmer winter seen for parts of Australia as El Nino threat grows

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s populous east coast is likely to have a drier, warmer winter, the weather bureau said on Tuesday, as it forecast the likelihood of an El Nino weather pattern could be twice as high this year. Drier weather would return Australia to its long-term trend of hotter weather and declining rainfall after...

No nuclear for us | Leaders one on non-proliferation and conflict issues

Nations represented at the US-Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Dialogue in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, this week have reaffirmed their commitment to address issues of conflict and promote nuclear non-proliferation in the region. This, according to a joint statement issued by Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) yesterday after a meeting on Monday. While acknowledging the nuclear...

U.S., Papua New Guinea sign defence pact at Pacific summit

By Kirsty Needham (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a defence cooperation pact signed with Papua New Guinea on Monday would expand the Pacific island nation’s capabilities and make it easier for the U.S. military to train with its forces. Blinken and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held separate meetings with 14...

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