(MENAFN) In an effort to challenge China's regional dominance, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand have formed an informal organization focused at increasing economic and political connections with small Pacific Island states.
The US-led organization, Partners in the Blue Pacific (PBP), will attempt to encourage "Pacific regionalism" and strengthen economic linkages between Pacific islands and the rest of the globe, according to a White House statement issued on Friday.
"We are united in our shared determination to support a region that benefits the peoples of the Pacific. We are also united in how we realize this vision -- according to principles of Pacific regionalism, sovereignty, transparency, accountability, and most of all, led and guided by the Pacific Islands," the statement read.
The announcement came a day after White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell said he anticipated more top US officials to visit the Pacific Island nation as Washington continues its drive to challenge China's growing influence in the strategically critical region near its territorial seas.
Campbell went on to say that Washington needs additional diplomatic facilities in the area, as well as increased communication with Pacific Island governments that "receive less attention" at times.
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