A 'BLUE Pacific Act' has been introduced to US Congress. The Bill "lays out a renewed vision and framework for U.S. foreign policy in the Pacific Islands over the coming generation." Expands diplomatic presence, aid & security cooperation. Thread 1/5 https://case.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=356

This new approach from the US recognises the collective agency of Pacific island states: "In naming this bill, we ... pay tribute to the concept of the “Blue Pacific” embraced by leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum as a shared identity and platform for collective action." 2/5

The Act also reframes the Pacific. Far from being 'small and vulnerable' ... "the collective land and maritime exclusive economic zones of the Pacific Islands cover more of the Earth’s surface than the land areas of China and Russia combined." 3/5

Countries in the Pacific Islands Forum are currently holding public consultations around a "2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent". Consultations have been held in New Zealand, Vanuatu, Tonga, Fiji. But are not [yet?] being held in Australia. 4/5 https://www.forumsec.org/pacific-regionalism/

Want to know more about the collective diplomacy of states in the 'Blue Pacific'? I explore some of the issues in this open access article from Security Challenges: "Oceans Apart? Considering the Indo-Pacific and the Blue Pacific". 5/5 https://www.jstor.org/stable/26908767?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents