Author: TMC Palau

Neymar has been ruled out of Brazil’s upcoming friendlies and is expected to miss their World Cup opener after scans confirmed a grade-two calf injury, the Brazilian Football Confederation said yesterday. Team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said the 34-year-old forward will be sidelined for around two to three weeks following an MRI that revealed a partial tear in his right calf muscle. Neymar joined the squad on Tuesday but missed training the following day after reporting swelling, before undergoing scans at a private clinic. He will miss Sunday’s friendly against Panama in Rio de Janeiro and the match against Egypt in…

Source: Entertainment Weekly Olivia Rodrigo is so done with all the babydoll dress discourse. The “Drop Dead” singer-songwriter has addressed the wave of criticism that she’s been facing for sporting babydoll dresses and matching bloomers while promoting her upcoming album, You Look Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love. The whimsical looks have sparked debate online, with some accusing the 23-year-old pop star of sexualizing children’s clothes. (The garment’s history is actually rooted in female liberation, but we digress.) “That’s been making me so upset,” Rodrigo said when asked about the backlash on the new episode of The New…

The Spain 7s tournament this weekend will hold special significance for two former Fiji 7s greats, who will reunite not as teammates, but as coaches of the team they once proudly represented. Fiji Airways Men’s 7s head coach Osea Kolinisau has been working closely with former Olympic gold medalist Jerry Tuwai in recent weeks, following the “Magician’s” appointment as assistant coach. Kolinisau is eagerly anticipating his first tournament alongside Tuwai in their new coaching roles. He said Tuwai’s presence has already made a positive impact on the players, with the squad benefiting from the experience and leadership of one of…

Overview: A new U.S. Government Accountability Office report warns that the Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands are facing steep population declines as residents migrate abroad for better jobs, education and health care. The report highlights growing labor shortages, rising costs for public services and concerns over the long-term sustainability of schools, health systems and infrastructure projects across the Pacific. PONPHEI/MAJURO, 25 MAY 2026 (PACIFIC ISLAND TIMES) — The populations of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and the Marshall Islands have dropped sharply over the past decade as thousands of residents leave for better jobs, education and…

[Photo: FILE] The Swire Shipping Fijian Drua are determined to end their 2026 Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific campaign on a high when they face the Queensland Reds at Suncorp Stadium tonight. Despite falling short of a first-ever win in Perth last week and missing out on a top-six finish, coach Glen Jackson says motivation within the squad remains strong heading into their final match of the season. Jackson admits it was frustrating for the Drua to sit second from the bottom of the standings despite recording five wins this season, the same number as several teams above them…

Australian aid The Albanese government’s fifth federal budget sees Australia’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) increase in nominal terms from an estimated $5.097 billion in 2025-26 to $5.450 billion in 2029-30. This increase is partly the result of the government’s applying its promised 2.5% annual increase to “base ODA” from 2026-27 to 2036-37 (see breakdown in Table 1). When adjusted for inflation, however, Australia’s aid spending is estimated to fall by 3% between 2026-27 and 2029-30 and by 7% since Labor’s first budget in 2022-23. As a result, allocations for several of Australia’s core multilateral contributions have been reduced or ceased…

Overview: The United States has lowered its travel advisory for New Caledonia, signaling renewed confidence in the French Pacific territory more than a year after deadly unrest shook the archipelago. While officials now consider the destination generally safe for travelers, warnings remain over petty crime, political tensions and limited emergency assistance outside Nouméa. NOUMEA/WASHINGTON, 25 MAY 2026 (ISLANDS BUSINESS) — The United States’ State Department has officially lowered its travel advisory for New Caledonia.  As of 21 May the advisory was reduced from Level Three (“Reconsider Travel”) to Level Two (“Exercise Increased Caution”).   The decision comes more than a year…

Minister Turaga adds all major projects are aligned to the National Development Plan. [Photo: FILE] The people of Levuka are still waiting to see real benefits from the town’s UNESCO World Heritage declaration. This was highlighted by the Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Siromi Turaga, describing progress on heritage development and beautification as painfully slow. Speaking during a recent visit to Levuka, Turaga said key discussions focused on the port, PAFCO and long-standing heritage issues that continue to frustrate residents. He says despite Levuka’s global heritage recognition, there has been little visible progress on the ground.Article continues after advertisement…

French President Emmanuel Macron and Papua New Guinea PM James Marape met in Paris on 20 May 2026. Photo: Emmanuel Macron-Élysée Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister James Marape was on an official visit to France last week, where he met French President Emmanuel Macron, and also held a number of important meetings to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Topping the list, through a joint communiqué, came the announcement of the setting up of a new PNG embassy in Paris. Currently, the closest PNG embassy is in Brussels, Belgium. The opening of…

Robert Schumann and Richard Wagner had many things in common and many convergent points between them. But also many divergent ones. Uniting them with the Rhine river as a common link is a good idea, because the fluvial knife that cuts a good part of Germany was the primary motive for Schumann’s third (chronologically fourth and last) symphony, while Wagner begins the cycle The Ring of the Nibelung with a prologue (Das Rheingold), the first scene of which takes place precisely at the bottom of the aforementioned river. In the case of the concert at the Palau de la Música,…