French foreign minister says she is open to South Pacific resettlement requests due to rising seas

Excerpt and Photo from apnews.com

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said on Monday she was open to any resettlement request from tiny South Pacific nations threatened by rising sea levels, similar to Australia’s agreement with Tuvalu.

Colonna said France had watched with “great interest” last month when Australia offered Tuvalu a lifeline to help residents escape the rising seas and increased storms brought by climate change.

At a meeting of Pacific leaders in the Cook Islands, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a plan that will initially allow up to 280 Tuvaluans to come to Australia each year. Tuvalu has a population of 11,000, and its low-lying atolls make it particularly vulnerable to global warming.

Colonna said she was not sure if the French Pacific territories of French Polynesia and New Caledonia had the capacity to make similar offers.