US pledges to boost aid and diplomacy in Pacific as historic summit begins

Antony Blinken opens landmark meeting a day after leaked documents showed discord among some Pacific leaders over US proposals

Joe Biden's administration has welcomed Pacific Island leaders for a landmark summit in Washington with promises of greater aid and diplomatic presence, as it attempts to counter China's rising influence in a region historically linked to the US.

In a first-of-a-kind summit in Washington, leaders from across the remote but strategic islands will meet Biden and the rest of the top US leadership on issues from maritime security to pandemic recovery to climate change, which threatens to devastate many of the low-lying islands.