US Vice President Harris to announce investments in Pacific

By ROD McGUIRK
Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris will announce new investments in the Pacific and the opening of two embassies when she addresses a summit of island nations that are increasingly coming under Chinese influence. Harris will speak virtually at the Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji on Wednesday. Her invitation from Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama to speak is remarkable given that the forum’s dialogue partners — including the United States, China, Britain and France — have not been invited to this year’s summit. A White House statement says she  will propose new embassies in Tonga and in Kiribati, a Micronesian state that split this week from the 18-nation forum in a major blow to regional harmony.