Source: Greenpeace Aotearoa
News that the United States and New Zealand will co-fund a strategic port in the Cook Islands is being labelled a gross act of colonialism and resource grabbing by Greenpeace Aotearoa, who say it’s part of the US agenda to start deep sea mining in the Pacific – despite huge resistance within the Cook Islands and across the Pacific.
The announcement, made at the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders’ Meeting (PIFLM) in Palau, will see the US contribute $50 million and NZ $10 million to build a new port at Tongareva atoll (Penrhyn), a former US military base.
The US Deputy State Secretary Christopher Landau, who is also attending PIFLM has said the “investment” builds on the Critical Minerals Framework that the Cook Islands and US signed earlier this year.
Penrhyn Basin contains a large density of high grade polymetallic nodules, which would-be deep sea miners are pushing to exploit. The US research vessel Okeanos Explorer has just been exploring this basin over July and August.
Juressa Lee, spokesperson for Greenpeace Aotearoa, says it’s disappointing to see NZ is complicit in this US plan which is clearly part of its bid to expedite unilateral mining permits to mine in international waters, and establish a strategic position.
“I don’t know why a meeting of Pacific Leaders feels like an appropriate time and place to progress the United States’ war machine, let alone the presence of the US itself. This meeting is for our leaders to assert sovereignty, honour what it means to be Pacific, and build regional consensus on matters that are uniquely ours, with our Pacific values at the centre”, says Lee.
“The Trump Administration isn’t about supporting Pacific sovereignty – they’ve been very clear about their priorities, and end game. A government that is pushing unilateral mining of the deep sea to fuel the US war machine has no comprehension of decision-making driven by our values and agreed by consensus.
“We know deep sea mining will harm the ocean we all rely on, and we know the minerals that would be dredged up are not going to any “green transition”, they will be war minerals that serve US interests.
“We have been watching the US government wage war across the globe for too long. I’m confused why Winston Peters and Mark Brown think this is a moment to be proud of, considering the Pacific nuclear-free legacy.
“We fought against US imperialism, and established the Treaty of Rarotonga declaring the region a nuclear-free zone. This treaty was an exercise of our cooperation, values and sovereignty – all of which the US dismisses by still refusing to ratify.
“I am here in Palau observing leaders from across Te Moana-Nui-a-Kiwa demonstrate Pacific values and priorities around climate responsiveness and ocean health. Many of these nations, bar a few outliers, are calling for a pause on deep sea mining. But the US is here hijacking this space to force deep sea mining – for their own interests – onto us, risking our homes and livelihoods.
“They have no right, and our leaders must call out this overstep, and stand firm in their own authority, and put the Pacific first.”
Greenpeace, alongside many allies, is campaigning to stop deep sea mining, an emerging industry where minerals from the deep seabed would be extracted using untested technology and putting deep sea life, and ocean health at risk.
Lee says New Zealand’s involvement in the port at Tongareva reveals where the Luxon Government stands with regards to its own war minerals deal in negotiations with the US. If it goes ahead despite the overwhelming opposition from iwi, communities and experts, the NZ government would also be putting foreign interests ahead of the health of the people and the environment in Aotearoa.
“The Pacific is not a playground for the US. Deep sea mining, if allowed to go ahead, will put the ocean and Pacific Peoples way of life at risk. The movement against this new extractive industry is strong and growing. We’ve won fights like this before, including winning a Nuclear-Free Pacific. It’s time for leaders around the world to say no to deep sea mining”, says Lee.