Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said it is "very disappointing" that an invitation to Fiji has been withdrawn.
Smith said since the last regional meeting "things had gone backwards in Fiji in an economic sense, in a political sense, and in a freedom of speech sense".
He said he wanted to continue dialogue with Fiji about returning to democracy.
New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said it is up to Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama to invite the Forum Ministers to Fiji.
However, Commodore Bainimarama said he knows that Australia and NZ are trying to turn some Pacific Island countries against Fiji.
But he said they will fail.
He also said that Australia and NZ used Tongan Prime Minister Doctor Feleti Sevele to invite Fiji to the Forum Ministerial Contact Group meeting in Auckland earlier this week.
Commmodore Bainimarama maintained that the Australia and NZ Foreign Ministers are not invited to come to Fiji.
Fiji withdrawal disappointing – Smith
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