Pacific Network on Globalisation

02/09/2026

📣 Pacific civil society groups have condemned missile testing in the region by and the , while accusing Pacific leaders of failing to speak strongly enough on growing regional security concerns.

Pacific Network on Globalisation Coordinator Joey Tau said Pacific leaders had remained silent on and Japan’s disposal of treated wastewater from the nuclear power plant into the .

His comments come as Pacific leaders gather in for this week, where and other challenges facing the Pacific are expected to be discussed.

Pacific Islands Forum secretary general Baron Waqa, however, said Pacific leaders were concerned about all missile testing in the region, not only tests conducted by China.

01/09/2026

📣 : Pacific Leaders Must Pause New Security Treaties and Put Pacific Voices First

Pacific Regional Non-Governmental Organisations Alliance - PRNGO Chair and Coordinator Joey Tau said the Pacific must ask whether these developments are strengthening genuine regional partnership or moving the region towards a security architecture increasingly shaped by external powers.

“We need real political control and civic oversight before permanent international agreements are locked in. Our sovereignty is at stake,” Tau added.

“What would a true ‘Ocean of Peace’ look like for Pacific peoples?”

🔗READ MORE: https://pang.org.fj/pacific-leaders-must-pause-new-security-treaties-and-put-pacific-voices-first/

31/08/2026

📣As Pacific Leaders gather in Palau 🇵🇼for the 55th Pacific Islands Leaders Forum (55PIFLM), a critical question must be asked: who defines Pacific security?

New regional security frameworks are taking shape across the Blue Pacific, with implications for sovereignty, militarisation and who ultimately has control over regional security decisions.

PANG’s latest report, ‘Fortress or Partner? Analysing Regional Insecurities and Pacific Militarisation Through Regional Compacts’, examines what is being built, what could become permanent, and what safeguards are needed before new international agreements are signed.

Pacific security must be shaped by Pacific peoples, with strong political control, transparency and meaningful civil society oversight.

🔗Read the full report here: https://pang.org.fj/fortress-or-partner-analysing-regional-insecurities-and-pacific-militarisation-through-regional-compacts/

28/08/2026

📣 : Fortress or Partner? Analysing Regional Insecurities and Pacific Militarisation Through Regional Compacts

✅Is the Pacific becoming a "fortress" instead of a true partner?

Right now, a rapid build-up of uncoordinated security frameworks is shaping the Blue Pacific. New legal structures risk locking in external military forces, access and conventional militarisation.

Shockingly, these frameworks remain completely silent on demilitarisation and nuclear non-proliferation. The big question isn’t whether the region needs security. It is who defines it, who controls it, and who actually bears the consequences.

🔗Read the report here: https://pang.org.fj/fortress-or-partner-analysing-regional-insecurities-and-pacific-militarisation-through-regional-compacts/

25/08/2026

📣 : Pacific sovereignty being undermined by deep-sea mining and investor agreements

Deep-sea mining is increasingly exposing governments to secretive foreign tribunals that have been used to challenge and overrule government action on climate change and environmental protection in many other countries, according to a new report released today by the Pacific Network on Globalisation (PANG).

“Mining companies have latched on to as a way to sue governments that exercise their sovereignty to make laws, policies and decisions in the public interest, but which impact corporate profits.

"Tribunals hearing disputes are notoriously pro-investor; they operate behind closed doors, and there is no appeal. Not surprisingly, many governments drop their plans in the face of long and expensive lawsuits. Pacific States must not be held to ransom in this way, especially not for something as controversial and speculative as deep-sea mining,” added Dr Kelsey.

🔗Read the full Media Release here: https://pang.org.fj/pacific-sovereignty-being-undermined-by-deep-sea-mining-and-investor-agreements/

25/08/2026

🌊 NEW REPORT | DEEP-SEA MINING & PACIFIC SOVEREIGNTY

Deep-sea mining is promoted as a source of critical minerals, but for Pacific Island countries, the risks go beyond the environmental, social, cultural and economic impacts.

PANG’s new report, 'Undermining Sovereignty: De-Risking the Pacific from Investor-State Disputes in Deep-Sea Mining', authored by Professor Emeritus Dr Jane Kelsey, examines how Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) could expose Pacific governments to investor claims over decisions on deep-sea mining.

Drawing on case studies from Tonga, Nauru, the Cook Islands and Papua New Guinea, the report highlights the risks of investor protections and confidential arbitration processes.

📢 The report calls on Pacific governments to assess and limit ISDS risks before they become entrenched in deep-sea mining frameworks.

Read the full report here https://pang.org.fj/undermining-sovereignty-de-risking-the-pacific-from-investor-state-disputes-in-deep-sea-mining/

21/08/2026

🌊VIRTUAL REPORT LAUNCH | DEEP-SEA MINING & PACIFIC SOVEREIGNTY

What happens when deep-sea mining companies can challenge Pacific governments over decisions to protect our oceans and communities?

✅Join PANG for the virtual launch of our new report:
'Undermining Sovereignty: De-risking the Pacific from Investor-State Disputes (ISDS) in Deep-Sea Mining'

🎙️ The launch will feature the report author, Dr Jane Kelsey and impacted communities.

📅 Tuesday, 25 August 2026
⏰ 12:00–1:00 PM (Fiji Time)

👉 Register via the QR code or through this link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qhWU2GI8RCWyaIDameuoWg

18/08/2026

🌊STATE OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN 2026 REPORT | The Pacific Ocean is facing growing environmental, economic and geopolitical pressures.

The inaugural State of the Pacific Ocean 2026 Report brings together regional perspectives to examine these challenges and their implications for the future of our ocean.

📖 Read the full report here: https://pang.org.fj/state-of-the-pacific-ocean-2026/



Pacific Conference of Churches Pacific Islands Climate Action Network - PICAN Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era WWF Pacific Pasifika Communities University GPPAC Pacific: Pacific People Building Peace PIANGO Pacific 2030 Pacific Regional Non-Governmental Organisations Alliance - PRNGO Pacific Blue Line

13/08/2026

Day One of the Pasifika Philosophies, Leadership, and Weaving Futures Conference at the Fiji National University (FNU) featured one of four Talitali/Talanoa sessions, bringing together reflections on leadership, advocacy, and justice across the Pacific.

The session, “Faith & CSOs: Navigating Grassroots Advocacy and Faith-Rooted Justice,” explored the role of faith-based and civil society organisations in advancing grassroots advocacy, while reflecting on the challenges and opportunities they face in Fiji and across the region.

During the session, PANG Coordinator Joey Tau stated: “The region is constantly struggling to determine: What are our Pacific priorities? Who determines our Pacific priorities? And who takes the lead on our Pacific priorities? We don’t know where to draw the line when it comes to who our partners in implementation are, or who our partners are in terms of determining regional priorities.”

The discussion offered an important reflection on Pacific leadership, not simply as a question of who leads, but whose priorities shape our region, whose voices are included, and what genuine partnership looks like.

27/07/2026

As the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2026 military exercise enters its final week in Hawaiʻi, it is a reminder that the Pacific has long been shaped by military ambition and strategic interests. From nuclear detonations to ongoing military activities, Pacific peoples have repeatedly borne the consequences of decisions made without their consent.

On 25 July, the Pacific marked 80 years since the Shot Baker nuclear detonation at Bikini Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

Conducted by the United States on 25 July 1946 as part of Operation Crossroads, Shot Baker was an underwater nuclear explosion to study the effects of atomic weapons on naval vessels after World War II. The detonation contaminated Bikini Atoll with radioactive fallout, leaving a legacy that continues to this day.

For the Marshallese people, Shot Baker marked the beginning of generations of forced displacement, radioactive contamination, devastating health impacts, and the loss of ancestral lands, culture, and self-determination. Eight decades later, these injustices continue to shape Marshallese communities, while full accountability remains absent.

As part of our , we honour the survivors, remember those we have lost, and stand in solidarity with our Marshallese sisters and brothers, and all nuclear-affected communities across the Blue Pacific.

The legacy of nuclear detonations is not confined to history. As military activity continues across our ocean today, we remember not only what happened, but why these stories must continue to be told. Remembrance is resistance, and justice begins with truth, accountability, and the voices of those who have lived this history.



National Nuclear Commission, Republic of the Marshall Islands