Insights
Navigating the regional organizations in the Pacific
In today ’ s Pacific island world , there is no shortage of regional efforts , meetings and organizations . If you have an idea and cannot connect it to some regional concept , it really is not worth having . Of course , the paramount group is the Pacific Islands Forum .
Between the Micronesians threatening to leave , being invited to the White House , and being the object of overtures from China and the United States , 2022 was an eventful year for PIF .
There are other groups like the Pacific Community and the Pacific Island Conference of Leaders . The Pacific Community , formerly the South Pacific Commission , includes territories and colonial powers like the United Kingdom , United States and France . The euphemistic “ metropolitan country ” seems like an anachronism in the 21st century .
The Pacific Island Conference of Leaders ( PICL ) is primarily sponsored and supported by the East-West Center in Honolulu . The center is supported by U . S . federal funds and features an annual meeting with key American leaders , including the president . PICL is pronounced “ pickle ,” aptly describing the tricky situation in which island leaders sometimes find themselves with the United States .
There are organizations based in intra-Pacific regions . The Melanesian Spearhead Group ( yes to this MSG ) is composed of four independent Melanesian countries , New Caledonia , as well as Indonesia and East Timor , which both hold membership with observer status .
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By Robert A Underwood
The Polynesian Leaders Group includes four sovereign nations including New Zealand ; and eight territories that include the state of Hawaii .
Not to be outdone , the Micronesians have two separate regional leader organizations . The Micronesian Presidents Summit ( MPS ) includes the leaders of the five independent nations . This group excludes territories .
The Micronesian Islands Forum ( MIF ), on the other hand , includes territories , including Guam and the Northern Marianas , and opens its membership to the governors of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia .
This approach was not used in the Melanesia or Polynesia subregional groups . They both have one organization and include territories .
The MPS and MIF met last month in Palikir , Pohnpei to discuss a number of issues . Apparently , MIF is no longer miffed at the way they were treated by PIF .
The communique issued by the MPS made a special mention of Kiribati ’ s return to PIF . Additionally , the entire group was addressed by Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka . These highly publicized steps meant that Micro-exit was not going any further . The theme of the MPS / MIF meetings was “ Paddling Together for a Stronger Micronesia .” On this matter , they were rowing in the same direction .
The communique issued on Feb . 13 also mentioned the establishment of a permanent secretariat for the MPS , which will be located in the FSM . There was also the announcement of a plan to build a One UN Micronesia House to be built in Kolonia , Pohnpei . This center
will house 19 international agencies and employ 100 + staffers .
The MPS summit was visited by a Saudi Arabian delegation . The Micronesian leaders solicited them to support the building of the One UN Micronesia House . This seems connected to Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr .’ s visit to Riyadh in January . Perhaps votes at the United Nations are on the table .
FSM President David Panuelo , who presided over the meeting , made clear that in the middle of great power rivalry , his country stands with the Pacific “ before anyone else .” This did not keep the MPS from chastising Russia for its “ illegal , brutal and unjustified ” invasion of Ukraine .
They also received a security briefing from Rear Adm . Benjamin Nicholson , commander of Joint Region Marianas . The nature and depth of the security briefing were unclear .
However , there was a lot of conversation about the expanded role of the U . S .
The opinions expressed here are solely the author ' s and do not reflect the editorial position of the Pacific Island Times .
Coast Guard to assist in dealing with illegal , unregulated and unreported ( IUU ) fishing activities . IUU has become part of the lexicon of increased U . S . military presence in the region . I wonder how many actual IUUs were outed in recent months .
The MIF meeting dealt with reports from various committees but did not take on any high-level political issues . Having both meetings around the same time put the MIF out of focus .
The Blue Continent consists of several different ecosystems . There are the Polynesian , Melanesian and Micronesian subregional groups . There are also territorial and sovereign ecosystems . Navigating these ecosystems is critical to dealing with real threats to real ecosystems like climate change .
Dr . Robert Underwood is the former president of the University of Guam and former member of the U . S . House of Representatives . Send feedback to anacletus2010 @ gmail . com .