By MICHELLE AUAMOROMORO in Suva, Fiji
While the ‘Friends to All and Enemies to None’ approach taken by most of the island states is good, there are certain issues that has regional impacts and needs the leaders to dialogue with each other, says the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Secretary-General, Henry Puna.
“That (the ‘Friends to All and Enemies to None’ approach) is the best approach for us, because we can’t afford to be enemies with anybody.
“And there are opportunities to be had and there are advantages in having relationships with everybody, and that is acknowledged; there’s no problem with that,” he said in a press conference yesterday in Suva, Fiji.
“Our leaders acknowledge the sovereignty of each member country in order to determine its own arrangements.”
“However, leaders also acknowledge that there are certain issues that have impacts beyond national borders and it is those issues that leaders are asking each member country to share with others; when they decide to enter into arrangements that are exclusively within the national sovereignty.”
Mr. Puna said some of those issues that had regional impacts included geopolitical interest in the region and security issues.
“And it is on those issues that leaders have asked each other to share and to dialogue with each other so that everybody knows what is happening and what might be impacting federal and national borders.”
Mr. Puna also clarified that the Pacific meaning of security was not restricted to the ‘normal military sort of security.’
“We have an expanded concept of security.”
He said that under the Boe declaration of 2018, the Pacific leaders had expanded the meaning of security in the Pacific context and it included things like the pandemic potions, transnational crimes, health and climate change.
“They (the Pacific leaders) acknowledged that this is the greatest existential threat to the Pacific.”
