Australia & Pacifics

CANBERRA, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- Members of Australia's governing coalition has called for a re-think of the nation's ban on nuclear energy.

Katie Allen, a government member of parliament (MP) representing inner-city Melbourne, wrote in a column for Nine Entertainment newspapers that Australia has an opportunity to lead the way on developing "safer and more effective" nuclear energy.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab made his first overseas trip since Brexit on Thursday to faraway Australia, where he reaffirmed Britain’s desire for a free trade deal and gave assurances that the countries’ differing views on Chinese tech giant Huawei would not stand in the way of closer relations.

Raab’s first stop was the capital Canberra on a trip that will also take him to Japan as well as former British colonies Malaysia and Singapore.

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The bodies of two U.S. firefighters killed battling Australian blazes were sent home on Wednesday in emotional ceremonies attended by officials and relatives.

Mourners gathered on the tarmac at Sydney Airport to see off Captain Ian H. McBeth, 44, of Great Falls, Montana, and First Officer Paul Clyde Hudson, 42, of Buckeye, Arizona, as their flag-draped caskets were lifted into aircraft for the journey home.

Fire trucks were parked nearby with their emergency lights flashing.

CANBERRA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- Australia's deputy prime minister Michael McCormack on Tuesday survived a challenge to his leadership, re-elected to lead the Nationals Party, defeating former leader Barnaby Joyce.

Addressing the media after the vote, McCormack said it was a great honour to lead the Nationals, which traditionally represents rural voters.

"I have never shied from the responsibility of making sure that every waking minute of every day I work hard for regional Australians," he said.

SYDNEY/MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Wildfires that threatened Australia’s capital, Canberra, over the weekend have been brought under control as containment lines held and hot and windy conditions eased, prompting authorities to lift a state of emergency.

While fire in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), home to the capital city, has spread to more than 55,000 hectares (136,000 acres), close to a quarter of the territory’s entire landmass, the heat fuelling the danger is subsiding.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — The Australian capital region declared a state of emergency on Friday because of an out-of-control forest fire burning erratically to its south.

It’s the first fire emergency for the Australian Capital Territory area since 2003 when wildfires killed four people and destroyed almost 500 homes in a single day.

The threat is posed by a blaze on Canberra’s southern fringe that has razed more than 21,500 hectares (53,000 acres) since it was sparked by heat from a military helicopter landing light on Monday, the Emergency Services Agency said.

Warragamba (AP) --- Fabric curtains stretch across the huge Warragamba Dam to trap ash and sediment expected to wash off wildfire-scorched slopes and into the reservoir that holds 80% of untreated drinking water for the Greater Sydney area.

In Australia’s national capital of Canberra, authorities are keeping a wary eye on burning forests and bushland, hoping a new water treatment plant and other measures will prevent a repeat of water quality problems and disruption that followed deadly wildfires 17 years ago.

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Swathes of southeast Australia were bracing on Thursday for a days-long heatwave that threatens to stoke bushfires that have been burning for months.

As firefighters and residents prepared for the heightened danger, the New South Wales (NSW) state government launched a six-month inquiry to examine both the causes of and response to this season’s deadly wildfires.

28 January 2020; AFP: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has called a general election for September, in a vote that will test whether her widespread popularity overseas is matched by support at home.

The centre-left leader on Tuesday announced Kiwis would go to the polls on September 19, two months ahead of the last possible date for the ballot, when she will seek a second three-year term.

WELLINGTON, Jan 28 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The 2020 General Election will be held on Sept 19, New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, said today (Tuesday).

“I will be asking New Zealanders to continue to support my leadership and the current direction of the government, which is grounded in stability, a strong economy and progress on the long-term challenges facing New Zealand,” Ardern said, at a press conference.