<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australia has launched a world-first program to train Pacific Island police to become United Nations peacekeepers.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is on an intensifying push in the Pacific to prove Australia is more than just a neighbour.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Australia has had an interest in ensuring that it's the biggest player in this part of the world," ANU National Security College policy advisor David Andrews said. </span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.nine.com.au/sport/afl/news-2025-adam-selwood-death-twin-brother-troy-joel-family-statement-20250517-p5m00n.html"><strong><span>AFL world heartbroken at death of Adam Selwood, just months after twin</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australian Federal Police will lead the five-week course.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>They aim to "make a real difference in providing safety and security for a better world," Acting Assistant Commissioner Northern Command Caroline Taylor said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>AFP Pacific Commander Phillippa Connell said it "reinforced Australia's position as the security partner of choice in our region".</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/australia-launches-worldfirst-un-peacekeeper-training-center-in-brisbane/5ef9239c-d033-4bd5-b68a-49fd0aa2a431" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Eleven nations are taking part, including Samoa, Fiji, Timor and the Solomon Islands.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The program is operating out of an AFP facility in Brisbane, where Pacific police are being trained to tackle problems like drugs and human trafficking.</span></div></div><div class="styles__Wrapper-sc-2o34ro-0 cmwkBV"><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><a href="/content/2025/05/17/07/46/today-in-history-may-17-what-happened-on-this-day-in-pictures"><img alt="" sizes="(min-width: 1024px) 636px, (min-width: 768px) 396px, 100vw" 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goULFa"><span>The centre was set up after a </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/australia-and-solomon-islands-sign-190-million-security-deal-in-blow-to-china/00627f8b-8b3f-4e06-9f45-981c069a5b18" rel="" target="_blank" title='landmark "Policing Pact"'><span>landmark "Policing Pact"</span></a><span> was signed in Tonga last year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australia's bid to boost its role in the Pacific is no accident, ensuring Australia remains the region's security partner of choice while countering growing Chinese influence. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"China is with open arms willing to make all sorts of contributions to security throughout the region," Andrews told 9News.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a 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