Pacific map Photo: Getty Images
An expert on statecraft in and around the Pacific says the "whack-a-mole approach" of the US and its allies to China's efforts in the region could be working against them.
Since 2019, when Solomon Islands and Kiribati cut diplomatic ties with Taipei in favour of Beijing there has been an exponential increase in diplomatic engagement with Pacific countries mainly driven by the geopolitical contest between the US and its allies and China.
RNZ Pacific Editor Koroi Hawkins spoke with University of Adelaide, professor of international security, Joanne Wallis, whose team this week updated their story map of the tools of statecraft being deployed by countries in the Pacific.
Professor Wallis says their analysis is that a more considered, responsive approach to China's activities would serve Western nations better than then their current reactive tendencies.
