Articles | Lowy Institute

20 Nov 2019
Pacific Islands

Public Diplomacy And International Broadcasting

Australia

Vanuatu
China, media freedom in the Pacific, and the great Australian silence

Jemima Garrett

Media freedom issues bedevil the region, but it’s the dwindling number of Pacific-based journalists that carries a cost.
13 Nov 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: Peter O’Neill speaks, a new volcanic island, media bans

Alexandre Dayant

Links and stories from across the Pacific Islands region.
4 Nov 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia
Kinship is vital to Pacific disaster response

Jeevika Vivekananthan , Tara Cartland

As the Pacific cyclone season looms, Australia should look to those already stepping up – the Pacific diaspora.
31 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia

China

Chart of the week
Chart of the week: Australian versus Chinese aid in the Pacific

Jonathan Pryke , Alexandre Dayant

By the numbers, while China promises a lot to the region, it actually delivers far less.
30 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia

Climate change
See you in court? A rising tide of international climate litigation

Tim Stephens

Vanuatu is pushing for international courts to tackle the climate crisis in a move that could put the heat on Australia.
30 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: donors jostle for influence, maddening Maseratis, more

Alexandre Dayant

Links and stories from the Pacific Islands region.
24 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands

Public Diplomacy And International Broadcasting

Australia
ABC: Australia’s waning soft-power star

Annmaree O’Keeffe

The public broadcaster alone cannot be responsible for Australia’s international voice, so more need to be heard.
23 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands

China and the Pacific
China, the Pacific, and the “debt trap” question

Roland Rajah , Alexandre Dayant , Jonathan Pryke

Charges of saddling Pacific countries in debt may be overstated, but China’s lending practices still pose risks.
16 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: dividends of a diplomatic switch, O’Neill warrant, more

Alexandre Dayant

Taiwan looks to shore up support in the region, plus other stories from across the Pacific Islands.
15 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia and Climate Change

Australia and the Pacific
“Accepting the science”, rejecting the action

Nic Maclellan

If the Morrison government is on board with reducing emissions, as it seems to claim, it needs to step up its policies.
11 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands

Sustainability

Japan
The underappreciated value of Japanese aid in the Pacific

Alexandre Dayant , Michael Nguyen

Japan has made a significant contribution to regional development, especially in managing lucrative fish stocks.
4 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands
Can the Pacific Islands be insured?

Vijaya Ramachandran , Junaid Sadiq Masood

High exposure to natural hazards puts Pacific Island countries at heavy risk. Insurance could help them cope.
2 Oct 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: the big switch, sun-warmed mobile phones, more

Alexandre Dayant

The diplomatic recognition issue between China and Taiwan rolls on, plus other stories from the Pacific Islands region.
27 Sep 2019
Pacific Islands

France
Jacques Chirac and the Pacific

Alexandre Dayant

The French president’s engagement with the country’s overseas territories leaves a legacy of promise and betrayal.
26 Sep 2019
Pacific Islands

New Caledonia

Bougainville
The Pacific and a “third option” to the independence question

Kerryn Baker

Bougainville or New Caledonia could chart their own course with “flexible sovereignty” – but that might not be enough.
23 Sep 2019
Pacific Islands

China and the Pacific
Solomons and Kiribati snub Taiwan for China – does it matter?

Jonathan Pryke

In shifting allegiances, two Pacific nations reaffirm China’s rising profile, but their own challenges remain the same.
19 Sep 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific Aid Map: An update

Jonathan Pryke , Alexandre Dayant

New data and new tools aim to improve research into foreign aid in the Pacific region.
11 Sep 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: diplomatic wrangling and country nomenclature

Alexandre Dayant

From Solomon Islands to Cook Islands, controversy abounds with stories from across the Pacific Islands region.
3 Sep 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia and the Pacific
Waking up to Australia’s real Pacific family

Wadan Narsey

A simple act of generosity could have recast Australia’s climate-change politics in the region for the better.
28 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands

Climate change
The Kainaki II Declaration is a signal of Pacific strength

Dame Meg Taylor

This amounts to the strongest statement the Pacific Islands Forum has ever issued collectively on climate change.
28 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: Forum fallout, PNG’s reshuffle plus new Nauru President

Alexandre Dayant

Australia stumbles on the step up, plus links and stories from the Pacific islands region.
26 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia

Papua New Guinea
The changing dynamics of Australia, PNG and the Pacific

Watna Mori

The visit by Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Marape signalled a new chapter in a historical relationship.
15 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific courts need more women judges

Anna Dziedzic

Women are rarely seen in Pacific Island judiciaries, but the tide is starting to turn.
14 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands
The state of the Pacific as the 2019 Forum convenes

Jon Fraenkel

This year’s gathering will hear new, old, and recycled ideas, but the ones that make a difference may not make the news.
14 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: Bainimarama’s back, Australia chided on climate, more

Alexandre Dayant

With the Pacific Islands Forum leaders’ summit about to get underway, here are featured stories from across the region.
7 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands

Indonesia
Pacific islands stand ground on West Papua push

Johnny Blades

In a battle of wills in the region, Australia and Indonesia now find the island nations have a measure of leverage.
7 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia and Climate Change

Climate change
Climate change is a national security issue

Pat Conroy

The Morrison government’s Pacific “Step Up” will stumble before it starts unless global warming is taken seriously.
1 Aug 2019
Pacific Islands

China
China’s aid: lend your money, (don’t) lose your friend

Alexandre Dayant , Sulagna Basu

“Friendship” is a common formula Beijing’s uses describe its Pacific ties – but what does being friends really mean?
31 Jul 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: life on Manus, kava questions, seasonal workers, more

Jonathan Pryke

From tracking development data to the visit of PNG’s PM, stories and links from across the Pacific islands region.
30 Jul 2019
Pacific Islands

United States

Australia

New Zealand
The Pacific step up goes to Washington

Alan C. Tidwell

Finding a voice amid the diplomatic clamour in Washington can sometimes benefit from the help of friends.
26 Jul 2019
Asia

Pacific Islands

France
The limits to French grandeur in the Indo-Pacific

Qi Siang Ng

Emmanuel Macron wants to restore France to be a great power but despite a regional footprint his dreams may be fleeting.
17 Jul 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: China challenge, an “Elevation”, power lifting, more

Alexandre Dayant

<p>Between a Step Up, Reset, Uplift and Elevation, plenty of diplomatic attention is focused on the region.</p>
9 Jul 2019
Pacific Islands

United States
The US does more in the Pacific than it gives itself credit for

Michael Walsh

Technical definitions of what counts as “aid” fail to capture the full scope of American assistance in the region.
3 Jul 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: power games, volcanic eruptions, and media blackouts

Alexandre Dayant

Links and stories from across the Pacific islands region.
27 Jun 2019
Pacific Islands

Public Opinion

Australia
The Pacific: pinching pennies doesn’t make for policy longevity

Jonathan Pryke , Shane McLeod

Australians might be wary on aid but are far more alert to the region’s biggest security concern in climate change.
21 Jun 2019
Pacific Islands

Papua New Guinea
Australia’s aid in PNG: the need for a gendered approach

Jonathan Pryke , Divya Venkataraman

Tackling endemic domestic violence and the lack of women in parliament should be renewed as a focus across the Pacific.
19 Jun 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: Paladin problems persist, climate warriors, more

Alexandre Dayant

Manus Island contract trouble, New Zealand’s cash splash for defence, and stories from the Pacific Islands region.
5 Jun 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: Marape takes the reins, showing up to step up, more

Alexandre Dayant

Links and stories from the Pacific Islands region.
5 Jun 2019
Pacific Islands

Papua New Guinea

Technology
The Pacific’s social politics

Alastair Davis

Damaging rumours might flash across phones, yet the answer to social media trouble lies not in bans but engagement.
31 May 2019
Pacific Islands

China

Taiwan
The importance of Taiwan’s diplomatic partners in Oceania

Timothy S. Rich

With the China challenge in the Pacific, Australia and the US could work together to help Taiwan preserve regional ties.
27 May 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia

India
Modi’s second term: what it means for the South Pacific

Teesta Prakash

Having rebuilt long neglected ties to the region, Modi looks set to capitalise on an “Indo-Pacific” connection.
22 May 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: surely not another MPs citizenship saga ..., more

Alexandre Dayant

Solomon Islands demands to Taiwan, trouble in Tuvalu, the journey to be a seasonal worker and more regional stories.
22 May 2019
Pacific Islands

United States
Sign of respect: the Freely Associated States come to Washington

Genevieve Neilson

Wooed by China and Taiwan, the presidents of Palau, Micronesia and Marshall Islands now sit down with Donald Trump.
8 May 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: UN chief inbound, don’t forget slip slop slap, more

Alexandre Dayant

Tuvalu has no sunscreen, kickboxing titles in PNG, the ADB in Fiji, plus links from the Pacific islands region.
24 Apr 2019
Pacific Islands

Papua New Guinea
A billion reasons: the future of PNG’s Sustainable Development Fund

Shane McLeod

PNG Prime Minister Peter O’Neill is waging battle in the courts over a predecessor’s multi-billion dollar legacy.
23 Apr 2019
Pacific Islands

Public Diplomacy And International Broadcasting

Bougainville
Simplistic and wrong to say the ABC is missing from Pacific coverage

Kellie Mayo

So often the ABC asks questions to provide answers other media outlets run with.
17 Apr 2019
Pacific Islands

Australian Foreign Aid
Follow the money: how foreign aid spending tells of Pacific priorities

Alexandre Dayant

Donor countries, be it Australia or China, illustrate their regional interests by where they choose to put their cash.
10 Apr 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: just two women in Solomon Islands parliament, more

Alexandre Dayant

Links and stories from the Pacific Islands region.
29 Mar 2019
Pacific Islands

Australia and the Pacific

France
Ignoring international law in the Blue Pacific

Nic Maclellan

Colonised peoples have rights to resources, on land and in the oceans, and this must be recognised.
27 Mar 2019
Pacific Islands
Pacific links: Tsai’s island travels, new in Niue, more

Alexandre Dayant

Indonesia’s interests in the neighbourhood, Vanuatu’s economy, and stories from the Pacific Islands region.