Pacific Islands Forum wrap-up: Palau hosted the 55th PIF leaders meeting, with leaders issuing the “Belau Declaration” on urgent climate action, creating a new annual police ministers meeting, and setting future host dates (NZ 2027, Nauru 2028, Marshall Islands 2029, Vanuatu 2030, French Polynesia 2031). Geopolitics at the summit: China–Taiwan tensions dominated, with China warning of “consequences” over Taiwan’s presence and leaders missing after Beijing objections; Palau’s president said China “never bothered” to inform it about a July missile test. Security debate: The Pacific Network on Globalisation warned against two proposed regional security deals, arguing they could lock in militarisation without enough control or public oversight. Climate finance push: The Green Climate Fund doubled Pacific commitments to about US$1b and signalled possible further approvals as demand rises, while Cook Islands PM Mark Brown urged partners to back the Pacific Resilience Facility so money reaches communities. Samoa at PIF: Samoa’s Deputy PM led bilateral talks with partners including NZ, China, EU, UK, Canada, Japan and Singapore, and Samoa’s government began a process for overseas Samoans to vote in future elections. Drug trafficking crackdown: Australia announced a US$600m Pacific surveillance push under the Waqa Moana Initiative to target narco-smuggling routes into Australia. Sports with politics in the background: OFC U-16 Women’s Championship kicked off in Solomon Islands with Samoa among contenders, while rugby league investment and Pacific sport links continued to feature across the region.