Hurts 6 Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 Just been reading this article: http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/world/1 ... -for-Tonga Has anyone here flown on the new plane? What was the experience like? Link to post Share on other sites
rossd 16 Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 I think Chinas influence in the Pacific will be bad news in the end. Tonga is over a barrel, they will not be able to stop Chinese workers and influence coming in and eventually could end up like Tibet. Democracy may be a bit dodgy in the Pacific now but China will put an end to it completely. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 Chinas been pouring big coin into the pacific for well over a decade, possibly 2. They are no different than the US or Aussie, or even us to a tiny degree. In the time I spent up there the chinese aren't the ones to worry about. Link to post Share on other sites
erice 732 Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 30-40 years ago nz, oz + usa were worried about russian influence in tonga over fishing rights tonga successfully played off these concerns to to get others to upgrade their airport, hospital and harbour http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia%E2% ... _relations very little russian influence in tonga today tonga is in a tricky position as the royals want to keep absolute control over as much as they can and the commoners will sort of tolerate this as long as the royals deliver a standard of living not too far below samoa's but as nz, oz + usa want tonga to become more democratic, they place conditions on their aid russia, china etc aren't so picky so tonga has to realpolitik its traditional backers to get things done http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_in_Tonga without a common land border, and historical claims, the people's liberation will not be moving in to tonga as they did tibet Link to post Share on other sites
wheels 543 Posted June 25, 2014 Share Posted June 25, 2014 Tonga and other Pacific islands for that matter, are nothing more than a Football in a Political game between the US and pretty much any other "Superpower". Boil it right down to nitty gritty, Pacific Islands are looked upon as Bases that Countries can use as Defense Platforms. The US is dead scared of China for some reason and even more scared of China having free access out in the Pacific. The best way to gain access to an Island Nation(without declaring War) is by Romancing it with showers of Gifts. The Island of Tonga is in a strategic position(among a few others) and is desperate for Aid and Resources and willing to be "used" to get it. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 The Islands have nothing and most they have or did have has been taken by other nations. Most have no option but to survive on Aid. There are next to no democracies in the Pac Islands. Those that say they are only do it to stop the nagging by stupid people who are trying to impose their will on others, just like Hitler did, from mostly NZ, Aussie and a few further afield. The Chiefs run the Islands, the same Chiefs that tell the supposed elected Govts what they can and can't do. The main reason NZ, Aussie, US, Chine, India and all the rest suck up to the Pac nations is while each one is tiny and hardly about to change the world, they each have a vote that carries the same weight as everyone elses in the UN, Whaling commission and the myriad of other wank tanks around the planet. Link to post Share on other sites
Black Panther 1,568 Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 Fish. Link to post Share on other sites
Black Panther 1,568 Posted June 26, 2014 Share Posted June 26, 2014 And in the far western Pacific forests Link to post Share on other sites
Pink Caddy 0 Posted November 29, 2014 Share Posted November 29, 2014 To answer the original question, I flew from Vava'u to Tongatapu on Real Tonga last September to link to an Air NZ flight home after sailing a delivery up. The aircraft was good, service good, only running 20 minutes late - good for island time. Only other option is to take the weekly ship - the one that replaced the ferry that fell apart and sunk a few years ago. Link to post Share on other sites
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