Coastwatchers 2.0 / Commentary

The live-fire exercises were a demonstration of China’s growing sea power in Australia and New Zealand’s immediate periphery – and meant to normalize the PLA presence there.

The new China-Cook Islands deal has implications for Pacific security, but particularly for New Zealand, the United States, and Australia.

Developing political literacy on China requires understanding not only Beijing’s policies and ambitions, but also how its growing influence is reshaping political decision-making and public debate in democratic societies.

New Caledonia is the most pressing issue in Pacific security right now. New Caledonia’s future is a black swan risk: waiting in plain sight, yet unknown to most.

China relations expert Professor Anne-Marie Brady examines the subtle but important shifts in NZ’s official attitude towards Xi Jinping’s China.

The China Coast Guard is expanding its reach in the Pacific, part of a broader campaign to increase Beijing’s security role in the region.

Washington must start to shape its own policy on the Solomons, otherwise Campbell’s trip is a fool’s errand.

The alarming news broke that the Solomon Islands is planning to sign a security agreement with the People’s Republic of China, opening the way for a permanent military base and intelligence listening posts.

China is using the recent humanitarian crises in the Pacific to normalise the People’s Liberation Army’s presence in the region.

In the last few weeks, Australian, Fijian, New Zealand and Papua New Guinean peacekeepers were deployed to the Solomon Islands to stabilise the situation for a pro-China leader, alleged to have used a Chinese government slush fund to bribe militants to withdraw support from the violent protests in Honiara.