Is the Pacific Triad (Australia, New Zealand and France) Undermining US Influence in the Pacific?

“Is the Pacific Triad (Australia, New Zealand and France) Undermining US Influence in the Pacific?” is the title of a paper by Dr. Francis Hualupmomi for Security Nexus. This paper discusses how Australia and New Zealand’s influence in the Pacific Island Forum (PIF) Secretary-General elections, to reduce Chinese influence in the Pacific, may have had the opposite effect.

Summary
There is a growing concern that the Pacific region is facing a major challenge in managing disintegration as Micronesia withdrew from the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF). Micronesian leaders believe that Australia and New Zealand, supported by France, have influenced the appointment of the Secretary General of PIF for geopolitical reasons. This article argues that the event at PIF has undermined the ‘Pacific Way’ of governance and has opened windows for Chinese influence in PIF. It concludes that Australia and New Zealand should adopt more of an indirect approach in their efforts to maintain stability in the region.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and do not necessarily reflect the official position of his organization, DKI APCSS or the United States Government.

Security Nexus is a peer-reviewed, online journal published by the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies.