The Koror Forum revealed the Pacific as a new center of global competition: the U.S. and China, regional partners, and new players (the United Arab Emirates, Serbia, Kosovo) are vying for influence, while the islands leverage their geography and diplomatic clout to negotiate advantages. The EU carries little political weight; Italy, however, can focus on concrete bilateral relationships. To understand the world, it is no longer enough to look only at traditional capitals, and the Pacific islands can no longer be viewed as scattered dots on a vast ocean, but rather as true maritime states, with enormous expanses of water and small landmasses.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- The 55th Pacific Islands Forum, held in Koror, Palau, between August and September, showcased a concentration of global and regional powers as well as new actors, making the region a central arena of international competition.
- There are four levels of external presence: global (U.S.-China), regional (Australia, New Zealand, Japan, India…), regular partners (the EU and individual European states), and new or even unexpected ones (the UAE, Serbia, Kosovo, Georgia).
- The islands are players, not a chessboard: the small Pacific states actively leverage their geography, Exclusive Economic Zones, and international votes to maximize offers of security, infrastructure, funding, and recognition.
- Internal dynamics and differences among island states—including rivalries over leadership, parliamentary politics, clans, chiefs, and customary land ownership—directly influence the geopolitical balance.
- The European Union has vast resources but little perceived political clout; Italy can capitalize on historical continuity and concrete bilateral ties in its areas of specialization (water, energy, blue economy).
- To understand global transformations, it is no longer enough to look to Washington or Brussels; one must also be aware of meetings like the one in Koror, where a new international order is already taking shape.