Save time by listening to our audio articles as you multitaskNearly two centuries later, these labels are still causing arguments among the countries those islands have become. At this year’s gathering of the Pacific Islands Forum , a regional body, proceedings have been dominated by the question of whether Micronesian states—Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia , Nauru and Palau—will leave the forum because of a sense that they are not being given their due..
On July 9th, two days before the summit kicked off in Suva, the capital of Fiji, David Kabua, the president of the Marshall Islands, dropped out because of legal complications that led to his country leaving theThe same day Taneti Maamau, Kiribati’s president, announced that his country had “taken the sovereign decision to withdraw from the Pacific Islands Forum with immediate effect”.pif
’s new secretary-general, edging out the Marshall Islands’ man by nine votes to eight. The five Micronesian members claimed that appointing a Cook Islander, from Polynesia, was in breach of a gentlemen’s agreement that the position would rotate among the three subregions. They gave notice of their intention to leave the forum in February this year.governments have been working behind the scenes to heal the rift.
Yet the deal failed to fulfil the Micronesians’ main demand: that Mr Puna step down this year. Instead, he will complete his term and then hand the reins to a Micronesian replacement in 2024. Kiribati’s president complained that all the Micronesian leaders should have been consulted about the deal.
The Solomon Islands and Kiribati cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 2019 and initiated them with China instead. Anote Tong, a former president of Kiribati, thinks that his successor is cooking up a deal with China. The summit presented a chance to explore regional approaches to security concerns. But untilcan resolve its internal power struggles, dealing with external challenges will be a tall order.
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