White House Welcomes Fiji to Its Indo-Pacific Economic Plan

Published date27 May 2022
Publication titleASEAN Tribune

27 May 2022 (Voice of America) Fiji is joining U.S. President Joe Biden's Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), the White House said on Thursday, making it the first Pacific Island country in the plan that is part of a U.S. effort to push back on China's growing regional influence.

The announcement comes as China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi begins a sweeping tour of Pacific Island nations -- including Fiji -- a region that is becoming an increasingly tense front in competition for influence between Beijing and Washington.

Wang arrived in the region this week seeking a 10-country deal with island nations there on security and trade that has unnerved the United States and its Pacific allies.

The White House welcomed Fiji as a founding member of IPEF, which it said now includes countries from Northeast and Southeast Asia, South Asia, Oceania, and the Pacific Islands.

"Across geography, we are united in our commitment to a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region,"...

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