National flags for the Pacific Islands Forum are on display on the tiny Pacific nation of Nauru Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The Pacific Islands Forum conference starts in Nauru on Monday night. The forum brings together 18 members including Australia and New Zealand to discuss regional issues. (Jason Oxenham/Pool Photo via AP)
CONGRATULATIONS to Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah on the recent establishment of the Consultative Council on Foreign Policy under the Foreign Affairs Ministry. It is hoped that this council would be able to give advice that could rectify some of the short-sightedness in our foreign policy which is largely a legacy of the previous administration.
One such shortcoming is our continued lackadaisical policy towards the Pacific Island countries. Despite being remote and tiny landscapes, the Pacific Island countries, including Fiji, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea and the Federated States of Micronesia, represent far more than meets the eye.
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