Bainimarama Set To Meet Foreign Ministers

It’s a historic day today as the Forum Ministerial Contact Group meets interim Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama and some of his interim cabinet ministers this morning.

The contact group which includes the very vocal Foreign Ministers from Australia and New Zealand, Stephen Smith and Winston Peters are expected to meet with Commodore Bainimarama and others from about 8:30 this morning.

Just hours before the meeting in Suva, the Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said he will question Fiji's interim government on plans to restore democracy when he meets the government delegation.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that there are currently no plans for Smith and Bainimarama to hold private talks however, the two leaders will attend a meeting together with other leaders.

Smith who is the first Australian Minister to visit Fiji after the December 2006 military takeover has called on the interim government to honor its faithful and unconditional commitment to hold a democratic election in the first quarter of 2009.

The Forum Ministerial Contact Group is visiting Fiji to ensure that the country is on track to have election in March next year as promised by Bainimarama in the Pacific Islands Leaders Forum in Tonga in October last year. Stephen Smith arrived in the country with Winston Peters last night and will leave for Solomon Islands tomorrow evening.