Before welcoming the island leaders, gathered under the umbrella of the 18-nation Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), Biden announced US diplomatic recognition of two more islands nations, the Cook Islands and Niue.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe United States is committed to ensuring an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, prosperous, and secure. We\u2019re committed to working with all the nations around this table to achieve that goal,\u201d Biden said at the welcoming ceremony.<\/p>\n
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US President Joe Biden and Kiribati\u2019s President Taneti Maamau at the Pacific Islands Forum at the White House in Washington.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n He pledged to work with the US Congress to provide $US200 million ($311 million) more in funding for projects in the region aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change, spurring economic growth, countering illegal fishing and improving public health, according to a document issued after a working lunch with the group.<\/p>\n \u201cThese new programs and activities continue to demonstrate the US commitment to work together with the Pacific Islands to expand and deepen our co-operation in the years ahead,\u201d the document said.<\/p>\n A joint statement said the sides agreed to hold another summit in 2025 and political engagements every two years thereafter.<\/p>\n Representatives of all 18 PIF members attended the summit, but not all at leader level.<\/p>\n Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, who has deepened ties with China, did not attend, and a senior Biden administration official said the US was \u201cdisappointed\u201d by that.<\/p>\n Pacific island leaders were invited to the White House for the second time in two years as part of the Biden administration\u2019s strategy to counter China\u2019s rising influence.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n Washington appears to have made no progress on offers of substantial infrastructure funding and expanded aid to the Solomons. Sogavare visited Beijing in July, announcing a policing agreement that builds on a security pact signed last year.<\/p>\n Biden hosted an inaugural summit a year ago and was to meet them again in Papua New Guinea in May. That meeting was scrapped when a US debt-ceiling crisis forced him to cut short an Asia trip.<\/p>\n Last year, his administration pledged to help islanders fend off China\u2019s \u201ceconomic coercion\u201d and a joint declaration resolved to strengthen their partnership, saying they shared a vision for a region where \u201cdemocracy will be able to flourish\u201d. The US would invest more than $US810 million in expanded programs to aid the Pacific Islands.<\/p>\n Meg Keen, director of Pacific Island Programs at Australia\u2019s Lowy Institute, said that although the US had opened new embassies and a USAID office in the region since last year\u2019s summit, Congress had yet to approve most of the funding pledges.<\/p>\n She added the countries welcomed \u201cthe US re-engagement with the region, but don\u2019t want geopolitical tussles to result in an escalation of militarisation.\u201d<\/p>\n Vanuatu Prime Minister Sato Kilman was also absent. He was elected two weeks ago to replace Ishmael Kalsakau, who lost a no-confidence vote for actions including signing a security pact with Australia.<\/p>\n The US is still negotiating to open an embassy in Vanuatu next year, but has not significantly increased engagement with that nation, which counts China as its largest external creditor. China signed a policing agreement with Vanuatu last month.<\/p>\n Fiji\u2019s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka listens during a meeting with President Joe Biden and Pacific Islands Forum leaders at the White House.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>AP<\/cite><\/p>\n Fiji has welcomed the stronger American regional presence as making the Pacific \u201cmore secure\u201d, but Kiribati said this year it planned to upgrade a former World War II airstrip with Chinese assistance. A $US29million program to assist Kiribati youth find work internationally was signed at the summit.<\/p>\n Washington renewed agreements this year with Palau and Micronesia that give it exclusive military access to strategic parts of the Pacific, but has yet to do so with the Marshall Islands, which wants more money to deal with the legacy of massive US nuclear testing in the 1940s and \u201950s.<\/p>\n The summit statement said the US planned \u201cto work expeditiously to meet the needs of the Republic of the Marshall Islands through ongoing Compact negotiations\u201d and was committed to addressing its \u201congoing environmental, public health concerns, and other welfare concerns\u201d.<\/p>\n Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, the island forum\u2019s chair, called the summit \u201can opportunity \u2026 to develop our partnerships for prosperity.\u201d He urged Washington \u201cto actively engage at the highest level\u201d in the 52nd PIF leaders\u2019 meeting he would host in a few weeks to endorse its 2050 Strategy.<\/p>\n Biden said recognising the Cook Islands and Niue would \u201cenable us to expand the scope of this enduring partnership as we seek to tackle the challenges that matter most to our peoples\u2019 lives\u201d.<\/p>\n He highlighted a personal link to the region \u2013 an uncle killed in World War II after crash-landing off the coast of Papua New Guinea. He said the summit, as then, was \u201cto build a better world\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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