Sawt Falasteen - At least five leaders skip annual Pacific Islands summit

The gathering aims to grapple with challenges such as climate change, drug crime, and the Chinese test-firing of a ballistic missile in July that landed in the Pacific Ocean.

China's security and economic influence has added resonance this year, because the 18-member Pacific Islands Forum is being hosted by Palau, a diplomatic ally of Taiwan.

Beijing has protested against Taiwan's inclusion among aid partners invited to attend along with China, Singapore, Japan, Britain and the United States.

China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, also declared Palau an "unsafe" place for tourists.

The Pacific forum, which will culminate with a leaders' retreat on Thursday, has been touted for decades as a symbol of regional unity.

But a growing number of leaders are skipping this year's forum and sending lower-ranked ministers in their place.

Samoa's government said in a statement its delegation would be led by the deputy prime minister.

The prime minister of Vanuatu and the head of government of the French territory of New Caledonia will also skip the summit, a forum official told journalists.

- No confidence motion -

Kiribati's president has already said he will not be attending.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale unexpectedly flew out of Palau on Sunday to deal with a political crisis at home after a no-confidence motion was lodged against his leadership.

Solomon Islands had been China's closest partner in the Pacific until Wale was recently elected, vowing to review a secret security pact with Beijing and repair ties with the United States and Australia.

Fiji, a founding member of the forum, said its delegation to Palau would be led by the foreign minister, but it was not known whether the prime minister might join at a later stage.

"The Pacific is our home, not a theatre for geopolitical competition," Palau President Surangel Whipps said in an interview on Sunday.

Tensions between the Pacific's partners should not detract from island priorities on renewable energy, drug crime, food security and climate change, he urged.

The leaders' absence may weaken any joint Pacific statement on the Chinese missile test, said Oliver Nobetau, Pacific analyst at the Lowy Institute, a Sydney-based think tank.

"Not having these leaders there really lowers the expectation of whether or not we will see a strong statement come out of the Pacific Islands Forum," he told AFP.

Some Pacific leaders were staying at home to tackle domestic political priorities, said Nobetau, director of the institute's Pacific Islands programme.

- 'Australia has a key role' -

But the leaders may also have decided that one-on-one discussions with external powers are more useful than forum negotiations in some areas such as security and economic support, he said.

Around 110 police officer drawn from various Pacific islands will provide security at the forum, the first large-scale demonstration of Pacific-wide cooperation on policing.

Australia, the biggest forum member and aid donor, has led efforts for the Pacific to provide its own security, arguing there is no need for China to have police in Kiribati and the Solomons.

"Investing in the security and prosperity of our Pacific neighbours makes our region safer and our economy stronger," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement.

"The big challenges facing the Pacific require solutions designed and delivered for the Pacific, by the Pacific. And Australia has a key role to play – as a partner and leader."

C.Hamad--SF-PST