Defence, Biofuel And Climate Change: What India-Fiji Joint Statement Underlines
Rabuka arrived in Delhi on Sunday on a three-day trip. It is his first visit to India in his capacity as the prime minister of the South Pacific nation.
In his meeting with Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji, Sitiveni Rabuka, PM Narendra Modi discussed an array of collaboration with the country — ranging from combatting climate change and achieving sustainable development goals, and solidifying defence fronts in the face of terrorism.
Rabuka arrived in Delhi on Sunday on a three-day trip. It is his first visit to India in his capacity as the prime minister of the South Pacific nation.
PM Modi lauded Fiji's membership with organisations like the International Solar Alliance (ISA), the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) and the Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA), according to an official releaese.
He reiterated India's commitment to support Fiji’s national resilience goals within the CDRI Framework through technical assistance, capacity building, and advocacy on global platforms.
Both the leaders expressed their strong stance on climate action, resilience building, and sustainable development; they also expressed openness for a growing collaboration within ISA. Modi also stated that climate change is a threat for Fiji and New Delhi will help it deal with disaster response
Moreover, they also reaffirmed plans of promoting biofuels as sustainable energy solution within the framework of the Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA). They agreed to strengthen cooperation on capacity building, technical assistance, and policy frameworks to support the scale-up of sustainable biofuel production and deployment in Fiji.
In addition to their green commitment, both leaders also condemned the Pahalgam terror attack and discussed strengthening defense relations with each other. They emphasised the importance of their shared interests in advancing regional peace, stability, and prosperity.
Modi said that India and Fiji support a free, inclusive, open, secure and prosperous India-Pacific. Following the discussion between Modi and Rabuka, the two sides inked seven pacts to broadbase cooperation in a range of areas.
Both leaders acknowledged the growing momentum in bilateral defence ties. Modi reaffirmed India’s commitment to advancing the priority areas of cooperation outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation signed in 2017, and to supporting Fiji’s strategic priorities in these areas.
The leaders welcomed the outcomes of the inaugural Joint Working Group on Defence, including enhanced cooperation in "areas such as United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, Military Medicine, White Shipping Information Exchange, and capacity building for Republic of Fiji Military Forces."
