President Biden will host an important summit this week, seeking to shore up U.S. diplomacy and strategy among the Pacific islands, to counteract China’s “economic coercion” there. Were you aware of these crucial efforts? How should we pray?

From Reuters. President Joe Biden will host a second summit with Pacific island leaders this week, part of a U.S. charm offensive to block further Chinese inroads into a strategic region Washington has long considered its own backyard.

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During the three-day meeting, the U.S. will announce diplomatic recognition for two Pacific islands, promise new money for infrastructure, including to improve Internet connectivity via undersea cables, and honor regional leaders at an NFL game. …

At last year’s summit with 14 Pacific island nations, Biden’s administration pledged to help islanders fend off China’s “economic coercion” and a joint declaration resolved to strengthen their partnership, saying they shared a vision for a region where “democracy will be able to flourish.”

The White House said this year’s effort would focus on priorities including climate change, economic growth, sustainable development, public health and countering illegal fishing.

The United States will also officially recognize the Cook Islands and another small nation, Niue, for the first time during the summit. …

SOME SKIP SUMMIT

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, who has deepened his country’s ties with China, will skip the summit. A senior Biden administration official said the U.S. was “disappointed” by Sogavare’s decision. …

“Vanuatu Prime Minister Sato Kilman will also not attend the summit, his office told Reuters. …

The U.S. is still negotiating to open an embassy in Vanuatu, but has not significantly increased its engagement with the nation, which counts China as its largest external creditor. China last month sent police experts to Vanuatu and signed a policing agreement. …

Fiji has welcomed the stronger U.S. regional presence as making the Pacific “more secure,” but Kiribati, one of the most remote Pacific island states, 2,500 miles (4,000 km) southwest of Hawaii, said this year it plans to upgrade a former World War Two airstrip with Chinese assistance. …

Share your prayers and scriptures below for the Pacific islands and for this summit.

(Excerpt from Reuters. Photo Credit: Marek Okon on Unsplash)