The Prime Minister touches down in Fiji declaring he wants to heal divisions which threaten the unity of the peak regional body, and he hopes for 'open dialogue' when he meets with the Solomon Islands leader amid tensions over China.
, but Mr Albanese would not say whether he would press his counterpart on the subject.
"And that means not necessarily agreeing with each other the whole time, but it means being able to have an open dialogue.", telling Pacific Island leaders this morning the region had not always "received the diplomatic attention and support that you deserve".She also warned that nations in the Pacific must be "free from aggression or coercion" in a clear reference to China.
Fiji Prime Minister and Pacific Islands Forum chair Frank Bainimarama chaired the PIF leaders dialogue.Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama responded warmly to the new commitments and took a swipe at the former US president Donald Trump's administration, saying the US was now "looking a lot more like the Pacific partner we have traditionally held it to be".
The two men — who the ABC has been told are the defence attaché and the deputy defence attaché at the Chinese embassy in Suva — were asked to leave the venue after they stood in the media area and were identified by a Fijian journalist.
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