Author: TMC Palau

Three top international rugby coaches are reportedly in the running for the Flying Fijians head coach job.The role was advertised last month and the Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) is currently conducting interviews.Former Springboks mentor Jake White, former Wales and British & Irish Lions mentor Warren Gatland, and former Welsh international Shaun Edwards are all believed to be in the running for the post.The Flying Fijians head coach position is currently held on an interim basis by Senirusi Seruvakula.The FRU has been tight-lipped on the names of the 31 applicants who applied for the role.FRU CEO Koli Sewabu confirmed the numbers…

Samoa’s Prime Minister La’aulialemalietoa (La’aiuli) Leuatea Schmidt has apologised for a historical video in which he used the term “Heil Hitler”.”I have been made aware of historical video footage reported in the media relating to a private family gathering in Savai’i in 2007,” La’auli said in a statement on Monday.”The footage shows me using the words ‘Heil Hitler’ and participating in a gesture associated with Nazi Germany in a private family gathering – not intended for the public.”Whatever the context or intention at that gathering twenty years ago, I recognise that those words and gesture were inappropriate and capable of…

Vanuatu’s government has condemned a “shameful, racist, and neo-colonial rant” made by a pro-France New Caledonian lawmaker.Nicolas Metzdorf, a French politician from New Caledonia and a member of France’s National Assembly, made a social media post over the weekend calling out Vanuatu for “denouncing French sovereignty over Matthew and Hunter Islands at the UN”.In a two-page letter intended to be satarical, Metzdorf mocks and ridicules Vanuatu’s economy, passport scheme and political ties with China, and shares a map depicting a redrafting of borders between Vanuatu and the French territory.Metzdorf also addresses Vanuatu PM Jotham Napat as leading the “Condominium of…

Fiji’s prime minister has announced the country will hold its first-ever constitutional referendum in just over two months’ time, and election campaigning for the upcoming polls will be suspended.In a news conference in Suva on Monday, Sitiveni Rabuka told reporters that his coalition government has identified Wednesday, 9 December, as the date for the potential referendum.Rabuka said he has written to the Electoral Commission to suspend all general election campaigning.It comes after the Fijian parliament passed the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2026 on Friday to move forward with the Rabuka-led coalition’s plan to discard the 2013 Constitution. The bill now enters…

KOROR, Palau — September 5, 2026 — His Excellency Wesley W. Simina, President of the Federated States of Micronesia, and Mr. Masato Kanda, President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), formally signed an agreement regarding the establishment of ADB’s North Pacific Subregional Office in the FSM.The signing, held on the margins of the 55th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Palau, marks a significant milestone for the FSM and ADB in their partnership to establish the North Pacific Subregional Office. Once operational, the office will further strengthen ADB’s presence in the North Pacific and bring its services closer to the…

New Zealand has turned down an invitation by Canada to join a multi-billion dollar Defence Bank.The Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB) is currently under development. Its purpose is to finance the defence industries of its member states, which contribute capital to be re-invested.Led by Canada, committed countries include Ukraine and Turkey, alongside several European neighbours.According to Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) advice released under the Official Information Act, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney invited his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon to take part in negotiations over the bank’s charter in late April, and eventually to buy in…

The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott:  Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau spoke today with Palau President Surangel Whipps, Jr. to reaffirm the close U.S.-Palau partnership and underscore our nations’ shared resolve to address regional and global challenges together. The leaders discussed a new U.S.-Palau Memorandum of Understanding regarding the transfer of third-country nationals with no known criminal histories. They also highlighted U.S. commitments to partner with Palau on strengthening the country’s health care infrastructure, increasing Palau’s capacity to combat transnational crime and drug trafficking, and bolstering Palau’s civil service pension system.    Source link

The Talanoa brought PICL leaders together to exchange views on strengthening PICL and determining the way forward for the Conference. Joining the Talanoa were East-West Center President Celeste Connors and former Governor of Hawaiʻi John Waiheʻe, a member of the East-West Center Board of Governors who also represented Hawaiʻi Governor Josh Green, together with representatives of the Pacific Islands Development Program (PIDP) Secretariat. Leaders tasked the PIDP Secretariat with continuing to develop the GAM through the Standing Committee ahead of its consideration by leaders. Members also agreed to convene a formal PICL meeting in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, in December 2026 to review the…

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Republic of Palau is a small island nation in the western Pacific Ocean, with an estimated population of about 18,000 people. The government is the country’s largest employer, with approximately 30 percent of the workforce, and the tourism sector was Palau’s biggest economic driver, contributing an estimated 40 percent to GDP. In 2025, GDP was $345 million, approximately $18,000 per capita. Palau’s official currency is the U.S. dollar, and the country has three U.S.-headquartered banks. Apart from tourism, major commercial industries include: Wholesale/retail trade Business services Local commercial fisheries and Construction The country’s small agricultural base supports…

Samoa’s Prime Minister La’aulialemalietoa (La’aiuli) Leuatea Schmidt has apologised for a historical video in which he used the term “Heil Hitler”.”I have been made aware of historical video footage reported in the media relating to a private family gathering in Savai’i in 2007,” La’auli said in a statement on Monday.”The footage shows me using the words ‘Heil Hitler’ and participating in a gesture associated with Nazi Germany in a private family gathering – not intended for the public.”Whatever the context or intention at that gathering twenty years ago, I recognise that those words and gesture were inappropriate and capable of…