In the past three weeks, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop have conducted a flurry of meetings with leaders of small Pacific island nations, ranging from Palau to Vanuatu.

This diplomatic frenzy contrasts with the limited attention that Australia typically pays to its Pacific neighbours – with the notable exception of when it goes looking for a “solution” to its refugee obligations.

But Canberra appears to have suddenly discovered that there is a panda-shaped shadow rising over the South Pacific. Actually, it is rising everywhere …

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Jonathan Pearlman, Australian Foreign Affairs Weekly