A Zoom call sets off a diplomatic dust-up in the Pacific
Micronesians complain that the Pacific Islands Forum treats them as second-class countries
IT WAS YET another Zoom meeting gone horribly wrong. The annual shindig of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), the main regional organisation for the far-flung countries of the Pacific, could not take place in person this year, owing to covid-19. Instead, its members chose a new secretary-general in a video conference. When a former prime minister of the Cook Islands, Henry Puna, squeaked into the job by a single vote, five of the forum’s 18 members threatened to withdraw from the body in protest.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Palm-fringed fury”
Asia February 13th 2021
- Myanmar’s generals face growing protests against their coup
- The obstacles to holding the Tokyo Olympics in July are daunting
- If America leaves Afghanistan there will be trouble
- Bangladesh’s government lavishes money on the army
- South Koreans are being driven mad by noisy neighbours
- A Zoom call sets off a diplomatic dust-up in the Pacific
From the February 13th 2021 edition
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