![]() ![]() ![]() Nauru's President Baron Waqa, chairing the forum, said the delegate "created a big fuss" and held up the meeting for several minutes after other forum leaders were given priority to speak. There was also a diplomatic confrontation over protocol between China and Nauru, when a Chinese official stormed out of a meeting and was branded "insolent" after not being allowed to speak. Yesterday a TVNZ journalist was detained for four hours after trying to interview a refugee on the island. The meeting risks being overshadowed by flare-ups on refugee policy and the battle for influence between China and Taiwan. They're there for the Pacific Islands Forum leaders' meeting - the pre-eminent gathering of top dignitaries from islands large, small and tiny.Īustralia is by far the biggest aid donor in the Pacific and has prided itself on its strategic pre-eminence as the region's "partner of choice".īut some quietly simmering tensions between Australia and its Pacific neighbours are starting to break into the open. Today leaders of Pacific Island nations will sit down together in Nauru, a speck of a country perched just south of the equator. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |