Annual meeting of the Pacific Islands states

The Chinese foreign minister presses for a meeting with Pacific Islands states reflecting China’s increasing interest in the Pacific region – or so the rumor says.

In mid-July, the annual meeting of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) will be held in Fiji’s capital Suva. PIF is the main regional organization for the Pacific region comprising 18 members. It also has as a number of dialogue partners, including China and the US. This annual meeting is the first in-person meeting to be held since 2019.

In recent decades, separate in-person meetings with dialogue partners have been held during the Forum meetings. But this year, in-person meetings are not to be held in an attempt to focus on internal issues. Says, PIF Chair, Fiji’s PM, Mr Bainimarama, the intention is to to make it easier for Pacific Island leaders to focus on key internal issues, including a recent conflict over the leadership of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.

Chinese interests in the region
According to ABC, still, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has invited ministers from all 10 Pacific Island states it has diplomatic relations with to a virtual meeting on July 14 (the last day of the PIF meeting). This has not been confirmed by other sources.

This invitation comes after, Wang, in May, suggested a regional economic and security pact with the Pacific ("Common Development" regional agreement) when he met the foreign ministers in a virtual meeting during a Pacific tour. This was, however, unsuccessful as the Pacific Islands wished for more time. The Chinese leadership is expected to follow up on the shelved agreement and the suggested meeting on July 14 might offer an occasion for this.

According to some analysts, the proposed economic and security agreement between China and the Pacific countries reflected Beijing's interest in creating a competing regional mechanism to the PIF. Scheduling a meeting to be held on the final day of the PIF leaders meeting could be seen in this light (Anna Powles, Massey University). Even if the proposed meeting in July is not confirmed from other sources, there is evidence of an increased focus and interest in the region from the Chinese side.

Increasing strategic competition in the region
However, China is not the only state showing interest in the Pacific region. Possibly as a way to counter Chinese influence in the Pacific region, on June 25, Australia, US, UK, Japan and New Zealand launched a new "Partners in Blue Pacific" initiative.

The aim for the five countries is to coordinate their efforts in the region more effectively and intensify efforts to tackle a range of issues ranging from climate change to illegal fishing. According to ABC, a US official is quoted for saying that there is also an "undeniable security component" to America’s push to re-engage with the Pacific and that the US might take "security steps" to "buttress" its position in the region, suggesting it was contemplating boosting its military presence.

Moreover, the US is set to open an embassy in the Solomon Islands. This was announced when US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken visited Fiji earlier in 2022, on the first trip from a US Secretary of State in four decades.

All this is evidence of the US’s increasing focus and interest in the Pacific region.

Concludingly
So, overall, this points to a region with more competition and presence among the great powers in the years to come. A region where both the US and China intensify their activities and focus. Is there evidence that China is pushing for the meeting with the Pacific leaders on July 14? No, there is only a rumor. Moreover, given that virtual meetings with dialogue partners have been a custom in past years, suggesting a virtual meeting on the side of the PIF meeting, should not necessarily be seen as a step up. It is with great interest that we will follow the PIF meeting next month.