Rice Makes Rare Visit to Far-Flung Region

APIA, Samoa -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed Fiji's military-led government Saturday to keep its promise to restore democracy early next year, during a rare visit by America's top diplomat to the far-flung South Pacific. Ms. Rice held talks with counterparts from 16 island nations from the region, which is struggling with a range of issues from rising sea levels to rampant poverty, instability and ethnic strife. A key focus of the talks in Apia, Samoa, was regional efforts to get Fiji's military commander Commodore Frank Bainimarama, who seized power in a December 2006 coup, to keep his promise to hold elections by next April. Earlier this month, Bainimarama postponed the elections he had assured the South Pacific Forum regional bloc, saying the timetable was unachievable because he wants to make electoral... [read full story]