Pacific leaders come together at ‘critical moment’ for region

On the first day of the summit, a 6.9-magnitude earthquake struck the Oceania country, triggering only a brief evacuation of the coast but no tsunami warning, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The choir, as well as students from the dance school dressed in traditional costumes, welcomed the leaders invited to the summit, which will be held in the capital, Nuku’alofa, on Friday.

“We are gathered together at a critical moment in our region’s history… We are on the front lines of the fight against climate change,” said Baron Waqa, secretary general of the FIP on the island of Nauru.

Maina Talia, climate minister for the small, low-lying Tuvalu archipelago, urged the “most polluting countries” to financially shoulder the growing costs associated with climate change, saying the “polluter pays principle must be put on the table”.

FIP brings together 18 countries and territories, including New Caledonia and French Polynesia. Today, many of its members are threatened with total destruction as sea levels rise due to global warming. Countries like Tuvalu (highest point: 4.6 meters) could disappear beneath the waves within thirty years.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was invited to attend the summit to emphasize the seriousness of the climate threat.

“The decisions that world leaders make in the coming years will determine the fate of Pacific islanders and then the rest of the world,” Mr. Guterres predicted.

“If we save the Pacific, we save the world.”

– US-China competition –

Summit attendees are expected to renew calls for local climate change adaptation funds in the face of a drying up of foreign aid.

They will also consider the candidacy of Australia, one of the world’s major coal and gas exporters, to organize the 2026 COP31 climate conference.

The indoor stadium where the Nuku’alofa summit was held cost $25 million and was a gift from China.

Beijing is determined to court the small Pacific nation, exploiting its largesse to build government buildings, stadiums, hospitals and roads.

Fearing that China could seize the opportunity to establish a permanent military base in the region, the United States and Australia have fought back by distributing aid, signing bilateral agreements and reopening long-abandoned embassies.

The U.S. delegation to the forum was led by Kurt Campbell, one of the U.S.’s main architects of efforts to contain China’s ambitions in the Pacific.

The heavily indebted Kingdom of Tonga is considered particularly vulnerable to Chinese economic pressure. It owes China’s Export-Import Bank about $130 million, about a third of its gross domestic product.

“We are at the crossroads of global geopolitical interests,” said Baron Waqa, a critic of U.S.-China competition in the region. “We must remain vigilant about regional security issues.”

– Crisis in New Caledonia –

To make matters worse, violence has been raging in the French territory of New Caledonia (a full member of the FIP) since May. This topic was quickly raised on the first day of the summit.

“We must reach a consensus on our vision for a peaceful and secure region,” said Tonga’s Prime Minister Sovalenei.

“We must respect our ancestors’ vision of self-determination, including in New Caledonia.”

On May 13, violence broke out in the French parliament during a review of an electoral reform project that critics accused of marginalizing the indigenous Kanak people. The reform has since been suspended, but separatists who want it abandoned entirely are still mobilizing.

The Kanak cause resonates widely in the Pacific bloc, whose former colonies are now fiercely proud of their independence. Waqa has been particularly critical of the transfer of pro-independence detainees arrested during the unrest to mainland France.