Pacific “whale highways” push: WWF-backed “blue corridors/whale highways” plan urges Pacific countries to coordinate protection of migration routes as climate change, shipping and fishing pressure marine life; Tonga’s PM Lord Fakafanua says whales are vital to ocean health. Tonga climate mobility deal: Tonga signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UNOPS in Palau to strengthen national capacity under the Pacific Climate Mobility Initiative, with future projects to be agreed separately. Community climate finance goes public: The Pacific Resilience Facility is taking 14 small community projects to pre-COP events and COP31, showing direct funding for water, food, coastal restoration, sanitation, renewable energy and resilience. Pacific security and drugs: Australia announced a $600m package to step up regional action against transnational drug trafficking flowing through the Pacific, with training and surveillance and an opt-in model for countries. Deep-sea mining legal risk warning: Pacific civil society warns seabed mining could trigger long-term legal and financial liabilities, while Tonga is named among countries with exposure to investor-state disputes. Tonga governance spotlight: Tonga’s Auditor-General flagged a TOP$277.86m asset-record gap and “major malpractice” tied to procurement controls in transactions over TOP$6m. Media sector boost: The Media Association of Tonga opened a new office, backed by the Australian High Commissioner, to strengthen Tonga’s journalism network and training. Sports funding and pathways: Tonga opened applications for 2026–27 sports grants as questions linger over sports levy funding and preparations for the 2031 Pacific Games. New Zealand services in Tonga: NZ will open a visa application centre in Nuku’alofa on Sept 14, operated by VFS Global, including RSE applications.