Fiji is committed to elevating our relations with Timor Leste – PM

Fiji is committed to elevating our relations with Timor Leste at all levels and looks forward to expanding collaboration in mutually beneficial areas of cooperation such as health, fisheries, gender, climate change, and biodiversity conservation.

This has been highlighted by Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama during his meeting with Foreign Affairs Minister for Timor Leste, Adaljíza Magno in Vienna, Austria.

Bainimarama says their common membership of the South Pacific Tourism Organisation is a strong start to advance towards a tourism industry that prioritises sustainability and local communities whilst ensuring business competitiveness.

Bainimarama also says Fiji is building back better from the pandemic, through investing in climate-resilient and sustainable infrastructure and disaster readiness, with a renewed focus on environmentally sustainable development and conservation.

He further says as Small Island Developing States, Fiji and Timor Leste share similar experiences and challenges however he is confident that by working together, they can achieve equitable and fair outcomes and ensure they are not left behind in the development race.

Magno says Timor Leste welcomes the idea of more collaborations especially, in the area of defence and security, training opportunities, and people-to-people exchanges, among other important issues. She says Timor Leste is looking forward to Fiji’s bilateral support and cooperation on issues of mutual interests in the future.