Ocean of peace in a world at war

As a consequence of my Scottish Jewish heritage, I only read a newspaper if it is free.

Since Covid, newspapers have disappeared from hotels and airline lounges never to return, nothing to do with covid I suspect, more to do with beancounters oozing their furtive frugality.

To get to my favourite part of a newspaper, the cartoon section, I flick through pages of headlines blaring about a world at war, fighting or arguing, almost everywhere.

Where indeed are the world's peacekeepers? Well the UN has peacekeepers in 11 sites, yes mainly in the middle east – why does that not surprise you?

It may come as a surprise to readers that the South Pacific nation of Fiji has been supplying peacekeeping forces for more than four decades. Fiji has sent more troops and police per capita to serve UN peacekeeping operations than any other country in the world.

It may also be surprising to readers that the present Prime Minister of Fiji, Major General (rtd) Sitiveni Rabuka was a peacekeeping soldier leading the Fijian contingent of UNIFIL in Lebanon, from June 1980 to July 1981, worked alongside French and indeed saved the life of a French Officer and was awarded the Legion of Honour medal. He did another 2 years of leadership in the Sinai in the mid 80's

For his service in Lebanon, Rabuka was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in the 1981 Birthday Honours List.

Working on an earlier 1980 theme, Rabuka has promoted the Ocean of Peace concept in September 2023 during the United Nations General Assembly debate in New York.

For sure the South Pacific has had their share of disputes, the Solomons and New Caledonia being recent examples. A peacekeeping presence within the region is certainly a positive aspect and Rabuka has the track record in driving this. But how is this to take shape?

At present Fiji is committing to a 73m Ocean of Peace vessel capable of regional disaster response, amphibious beach landings similar to the latest United States Marine Corps (USMC) vessel, to provide a much-needed regional capability.

At present when southwest Pacific islands are struck by cyclones or tsunamis, the affected area has to wait for Australia or New Zealand to select a vessel and equip it for the task, sometimes taking 2-3 weeks to arrive at the disaster site.

This Fiji-based vessel can carry 84 disaster response containers which can cater for up to 750 people in distress, and can reach most neighbouring nations within 2 days.

For regional peacekeeping duties, this vessel has good accommodation and meeting rooms, providing an ideal neutral zone for parties to discuss and resolve differences before they become irreconcilable.

For context, the Bougainville crisis (1988-1998) was brought to an end after a meeting of opposing sides on the visiting Christian mission ship "Doulos" at Bougainville wharf. The whole southwest Pacific region is predominantly Christian with its accompanying family values, and people who live happier, healthier and more content peaceful lives. After the Black Monday 1987 financial crisis I was with my wife Stephanie in a local market in Samoa, when she asked a local vendor the price of a coconut. "One Tala" (a Samoan dollar) the lady responded. My wife explained that there had been a financial stock market crisis with a 2 trillion-dollar loss, to which the smiling lady vendor replied "The coconut is still one Tala". We laughed.

Running a ship these days, has fuel as the highest cost component, the limiting criteria financially and operationally.

Another retired soldier, Dwight D Eisenhower, addressed the UN General Assembly on December 8^th 1953, almost exactly 71 years ago, with his "Atoms For Peace" speech, resulting in the US designing and building the nuclear passenger cargo "Savannah". This ship was capable of circumnavigating the globe 14 times at an impressive speed of 20 knots using only 22 kgs of uranium, the equivalent of a loaded suitcase.

Like computer technology, nuclear propulsion has become miniaturised, safer and more highly efficient in the last seven decades.

In Rabuka's bold style of a soldier, knowing the mission capability limitations caused by fuel, and that most military casualties are caused while "defending the supply lines", he has opened dialogue with producers of marine micro modular reactors (MMRS) which will allow this flexible Ocean of Peace vessel to respond rapidly in the whole region for 10 years without refuelling and with zero emissions.

Fiji's number one blockage against its prosperity is the $1 billion of imported diesel fuel. This is the same for most pacific islands. Even in emergency response, having a solid electrical energy supply is always a prime requirement for first responders. Alongside a home port for 365 nights a year, with the vessel's power system connected to the grid, this system will reduce the local fuel consumption by 5.26 million litres per annum along with a corresponding reduction in emissions.

Imagine if you will, just over 500 years ago, being Ferdinand Magellan on his diminutive 27m "The Trinity" (La Trinidad) designed for neither speed nor comfort, after battling strong winds and treacherous currents of the Magellan Strait you emerge to suddenly to find your little ship and crew in this Great Ocean where the sea was calm. This would inspire you as it did Magellan, to call it the Peaceful or Pacific Ocean!

Now the Pacific peacekeeper Rabuka with a vessel 3 times the size of Magellan's Trinity, with an unlimited range, is heading a bold initiative for serving the Pacific region in several ways that will leave him a substantial legacy.