Pacific Islands Forum leaders travelled to New York to stand together as a unified regional voice at the 81st session of the United Nations general assembly this week.

Surangel Whipps Jr, who is currently the Pacific Islands Forum chairman, delivered a high-level statement on Thursday on behalf of the delegation.

The Palau President asked that the sovereignty of Pacific nations be respected.

"The Pacific is our home, not a theatre for geopolitical competition," Mr Whipps first told the UN.

"It must remain an ocean of peace where nations meet in cooperation, international law is respected, and the security of the Pacific peoples is never compromised."

Mr Whipps explicitly framed that the Pacific is the "home of its peoples, communities, cultures, fisheries and ecosystems".

The chairman had raised concerns earlier this month at the 55th Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting in Palau over China's ballistic missile test, which overflew several nations without adequate notice.

"Our region must never be treated as an empty expanse for strategic competition or test of military power," Mr Whipps said.

"The Pacific way is to address tensions before they become crisis; make room for dialogue before disagreement becomes conflict."

Mr Whipps said the Pacific's security was also tied directly to climate change, ocean health, energy and greater access to finance.

The latest findings from the UN Environment Program showed the world was certain to exceed the 1.5C temperature threshold, making delivery on climate commitments more urgent.

"This kind of reality must strengthen our resolve to deliver what we have promised - prepare our communities for the impacts science tells us are inevitable," he said.

Mr Whipps highlighted the Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity initiative, launched at the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference, reinforced by the Pacific Leaders' Ocean Statement.

The initiative collectively brings 22 Pacific island nations and territories to mobilise investment for sustainable ocean management, food systems and resilient livelihoods.

Palau has translated the regional vision into national action through its sustainable ocean policy, committing to science-based and adaptive management of the ocean.

"The task now is delivery," he said.

"We need financing that reaches communities without adding debt, adaptation finance that is accessible to countries already bearing the cost of the problems they did not create."

Mr Whipps called for grant-based and concessional finance, support for energy systems and investment which reflects the circumstances of small-island developing states.

"Those who contributed the least to this climate crisis yet confront the worst threats of rising sea-levels must not be burdened with debt," he said.

As chairman, he backed the Pacific Resilience Facility to turn resources into community-level climate and disaster resilience.

"Energy security is climate security and national security," he added.

The Pacific's Mana Bara Call to Action regional commitment was highlighted where Pacific leaders reaffirmed a vision of 100 per cent renewable energy and a just and inclusive transition away from fossil fuels.

Mr Whipps said the region's vision was ultimately about protecting future generations.

"Our children...deserve a world that is safe, healthy, and clean," he said.

"Knowledge is like ocean waves: it comes in many forms and sizes, yet no wave overpowers another, and they ultimately reach the same shore."