1) MSG meeting in Suva targets members’ commitment

2) Bad weather impairs Mi-17 chopper crash victims' evacuation in Papua  

3) Despite its Pacific ‘step-up’, Australia is still not listening to the region new research shows

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https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/409308/msg-meeting-in-suva-targets-members-commitment

1) MSG meeting in Suva targets members’ commitment

8:38 pm today  

Officials attending this week's Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting in Suva have been urged to consolidate their countries' commitment to the MSG's work.

Officials attending this week's Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting in Suva have been urged to consolidate their countries' commitment to the MSG's work.

The meeting chair, Barbara Age of Papua New Guinea, told delegates a key feature of the meeting is to review and finalise the work programme for the Melanesian sub-regional grouping.

The MSG's full members - PNG, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and New Caledonia's FLNKS movement - are joined at the meeting by associate member Indonesia and observers including the United Liberation Movement for West Papua.

Questions of various MSG members' commitment to the group have increased in recent years as its secretariat faced funding constraints.

Fiji media outlets have reported that MSG officials are determined for member states to use this week's meeting to reaffirm the spirit of working together as a collective.

According to the Fiji Broadcasting Corporation, Ms Age said that the ever-changing landscape of regional geopolitics required firm commitment and recognition to bond together as a united sub-regional force.

The Fiji Times reports the group was also to discuss the secretariat's budget for the next financial year, behind closed doors.

MSG foreign ministers will be having discussions tomorrow, before the overall meeting concludes on Thursday.

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https://en.antaranews.com/news/141122/bad-weather-impairs-mi-17-chopper-crash-victims-evacuation-in-papua

2) Bad weather impairs Mi-17 chopper crash victims' evacuation in Papua  

2 hours ago

Jayapura, Papua (ANTARA) - Efforts to evacuate victims of an Mi-17 helicopter that crashed on Mount Mandala, Oksob Sub-district, Pegunungan Bintang District, Papua Province, were hindered by bad weather, according to an official.

In addition to the bad weather, difficult terrain posed an obstacle to the evacuation operation, Col. Infantry Binsar Sianipar, commander of the military regional command (Korem) 172/PWY, stated here on Tuesday.

The ill-fated helicopter is believed to be in a mountainous area at 12,500 feet above sea level, with a slope of around 90 degrees, or perpendicular.

A helicopter, earlier deployed to locate the Mi-17 helicopter, managed to spot it only once while being airborne and was compelled to return to Oksibil owing to bad weather, Sianipar stated, adding that most likely, the rescuers must head to the location on foot.

Mapping was being conducted to find the closest point to drop personnel for the evacuation operation.

The military has also sought assistance from local residents aware of the way to the location.

"Aerial and land evacuation will very likely continue on Wednesday (Feb 12) by deploying three Indonesian Army helicopters and a civilian helicopter belonging to Demonim Air," Sianipar remarked.

The Russia-made military helicopter, operated by the Indonesian Army Aviation Center, with 12 passengers aboard, including five members of the 725 Infantry Battalion/WRG, went missing during its flights from Oksibil to Sentani, Papua, on June 28, 2019. Related news: 60 Army personnel readied to evacuate victims of MI 17 chopper
Related news: Search efforts to locate Indonesian Army's MI-17 chopper resumed

EDITED BY INE 

Reporter: Evarukdijati, Fardah
Editor: Suharto

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3) Despite its Pacific ‘step-up’, Australia is still not listening to the region new research shows

February 11, 2020 6.11am AEDT

The Australian government has spent the past year promoting its “Pacific step-up” as one of the country’s “highest foreign policy priorities”. 

Although there has been some progress on the diplomatic frontin the past year – an increase in diplomatic visits, a boost in foreign aid and a new A$2 billion infrastructure financing initiative – there is some way to go to bring balance, mutual respect and a sense of long-term partnership and commitment to our relations with the region. 

New research shows people in three of Australia’s closest Pacific neighbours – the Solomon Islands, Fiji and Vanuatu – are concerned Australia does not know how to engage successfully as part of the Pacific community. 

Three key messages came through: 

• the quality of our relationships matter more than the quantity of our aid or trade
• our values, norms and ways of doing things are a vital part of how we conduct our engagement with the Pacific 
• Australia, and its historical relationship, is valued but we are one of many partners for Pacific islanders………...
  https://theconversation.com/despite-its-pacific-step-up-australia-is-still-not-listening-to-the-region-new-research-shows-130539?fbclid=IwAR2pibFTKXGyKbJEP6_cwluISTjnZpW8F5gRxS1TbZtFvBhJS8HaoLpJpVo