The leaders of Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands will skip this week's annual Pacific Islands Forum that starts on Monday in Rarotonga, Cook Islands, reports said.

China tussle? Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands leaders to skip Pacific Islands Forum meet

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden will meet the Pacific Islands leaders next month in Papua New Guinea for a “historic future-oriented” meeting, the region’s Prime Minister James Marape said in a statement on Sunday.

Indian PM Modi, US President Biden to meet Pacific Islands leaders in Papua New Guinea

The gunman accused of killing 51 people in New Zealand has handwritten a letter from jail expressing his political and social views, prompting Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to say that should never have been allowed, media said on Wednesday.

Accused New Zealand gunman's letter from jail circulates online