Read the latest news from regional and global sources, presenting different voices and perspectives.

US couple risk France trial over stolen shipwreck gold
An 80-year-old US novelist and her husband are among several people facing a possible trial in France over the illegal sale of gold bars plundered from an 18th-century shipwreck, after French prosecutors requested the case go to court. Eleonor...

Pacific News Briefs: Award-Winning Māori Short Film
Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — An award-winning short film, which honors the resilience of Māori youth, has been named a finalist at the New Zealand International Film Festival. Written and directed by Aroha Awarau (Ngāti Maru, Ngāti Porou, Niue,...

China downplayed nuclear-capable missile test, classified New Zealand gov’t papers show
China tried to mislead foreign governments in 2024 by playing down the importance of a nuclear-capable missile test over the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand diplomats privately warned in documents obtained by AFP. This handout photograph, taken on...

How smugglers tried to get a record $800million cocaine shipment into Australia before authorities swooped
By CHARLOTTE MCINTYRE FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA Published: 11:22 EDT, 2 July 2025 | Updated: 12:59 EDT, 2 July 2025 A cargo ship bound for Australia has been found to have a massive 2.5 tonnes of cocaine onboard, worth about $800million. Officers...

15 Exceptional Winners of the UN World Ocean Day Photo Contest
Wonder, 1st Place, Rachel Moore, USA “This photo, taken in Mo'orea, French Polynesia in 2024, captures the eye of a humpback whale named Sweet Girl, just days before her tragic death. Four days after I captured this intimate moment, she was struck...

Pacific Ocean Commissioner: Op -ED – Ripples to Waves:
By Dr Filimon Manoni, Pacific Ocean Commissioner KOROR, 30 JUNE 2025 (PIFS) — It’s been two weeks since the curtains fell on the third UN Ocean Conference. At this largest ever ocean summit, the Pacific voice echoed as a collective, calling for...

Tjibaou on New Caledonia talks in Paris: “We want to resolve this now”
Koror, Palau-It’s been two weeks since the curtains fell on the third UN Ocean Conference. At this largest ever ocean summit, the Pacific voice echoed as a collective, calling for more global ocean accountability, and offering transformational...

Teahupo’o Will Now be Part of the World’s Largest Marine Protected Area
Photo: Narno Beats // Unsplash There is no wave in the world quite like Teahupo’o, and a new announcement from the French Polynesian government will go toward protecting that. The Tahitian break, which recently played host to the sport’s...

Skeleton of man from ancient Egypt gives up its secrets in scientific first
The first whole ancient Egyptian genome has been sequenced by researchers, taken from a man who lived 4,500 to 4,800 years ago in the age of the first pyramids. By investigating chemical signals in his teeth relating to diet and environment, the...

The 10 countries with the most time zones in the world
At first glance, it seems obvious that Russia or the United States would dominate the time zone count, given their sheer size. But the rankings tell a more layered story, one shaped not just by continental spread, but by colonial history and the...
Record 2.5 tonnes of cocaine seized off New Caledonia on Panama-flagged vessel bound for Australia
French customs officers board a ship as part of anti-drug traffic operation. Photo: Supplied / Douane France A record 2.5 tonnes of cocaine were seized last week off New Caledonia, the French High Commission in New Caledonia said on Thursday. The...

Remembering Bolton Wanderers' Premier League Years: Part three, 2001/02
In total, the club have racked up 13 seasons in the top division since it was rebranded in 1992, playing 494 matches and scoring 745 goals. The Bolton News takes a look back at each season, talking to some of the stars who featured, and re-living...

The Ocean Still Holds Mysteries. That’s Why We Must Save It
When the world’s first marine reserves were established in the 1920s, Jacques Cousteau was an adolescent. The deepest we could dive was about 500 ft. Humans were beginning to imagine what could be beneath the surface, what discoveries lay waiting,...

The Ocean Still Holds Mysteries. That's Why We Must Save It
A diver surveys a coral reef on Nov, 27, 2017 near the Comoros archipelago, Indian Ocean. Credit - Alexis Rosenfeld—Getty Images When the world’s first marine reserves were established in the 1920s, Jacques Cousteau was an adolescent. The deepest...

Pacific tourism booms in the first quarter. Is it a blip?
International travel has already exceeded global expectations this year and hopes are sky high heading into summer. As the northern hemisphere enters its summer vacation season, the southern and eastern parts of the globe are expecting a gold...

10 beautiful islands in the world you must visit in July 2025
It's time to hit the beach! The hot summer breeze is suffocating you in your homes and you can't spend the entire season within the walls of your abode. Thus, with the Fourth of July weekend coming soon or even later in July, you can plan an...

Seven things we learned at the UN Ocean Conference (and one we didn’t)
The French port of Nice was overrun last week with politicians and diplomats sweltering in suits, cooler representatives from NGOs and local communities, and a staggering number of police. More heads of state, governments and members of civil...

China downplayed missile test: NZ papers
China tried to mislead foreign governments last year by playing down the importance of a nuclear-capable missile test over the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand diplomats privately warned in documents obtained by Agence France-Presse (AFP). Beijing sent...

PACIFIC JOURNOS MEET CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY OFFICIAL, PRAISE CHINA
Beijing, China – SIX Pacific Islands journalists met with the Director of the Pacific Island Division, Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Chinese Ministry on Foreign Affairs, Gu Xinqiang in Beijing and exchanged views within...

Brazil’s So-Called Arte Popular Gets Even More Popular
Earlier this spring, artist Julia Isídrez led an informal guided tour at the São Paulo gallery Gomide & Co. The occasion was a joint exhibition featuring her work alongside that of Maria Lira. At face value, the two artists don’t seem to have much...