Second U.S.- Pacific Islands Forum Summit held in Washington, D.C.

Matěj Moleš

President Biden inaugurated the U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum Summit, establishing diplomatic relations with the Cook Islands and Niue and announcing a $200 million plan for Pacific climate resilience. Participants collectively acknowledged the climate crisis facing coastal nations most acutely and called for international support for mitigation efforts.

Matěj Moleš

Image © The New York Times | Haiyun Jiang

Today is the start of the two-day U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum Summit, where President Biden welcomed to the White House representatives from the governments of Australia, the Cook Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

In a joint statement, participants recognized the climate emergency facing Pacific nations, reaffirmed the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting the global average temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and called for international financial support for meaningful mitigation action.

To kick off the summit, President Biden announced plans to administer $200 million to finance climate-resilient infrastructure and recovery in the Pacific. This year's summit also marked the formal establishment of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and the Cook Islands and Niue.

To learn more, read the White House statement here.

Contributors

Matěj Moleš

Campaign Manager

Born in the snowy Czech mountains, Matěj’s thirst for knowledge brought him to sunny South Africa. Equipped with political savvy, oceanic wisdom, and a surfboard, catch him in the water hanging ten/on for dear life, smiling either way.

Cape Town, South Africa

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