Foreign Affairs Minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola has welcomed the stance taken by Australia=s Opposition Coalition party’s intentions to engage with Fiji.

During the Australian election debate on Foreign Policy issues, Opposition  spokeswoman on Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop had said that a Coalition government would open negotiations with the Fiji  Government and Prime Minister Commodore Bainimarama for electoral reform as a way of breaking the current diplomatic standoff between Suva and Canberra.

Ratu Inoke said this is a positive indicator and Fiji is willing to engage with countries who are genuinely interested in assisting Fiji with the reforms before elections in 2014.

He said Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith's Policy towards Fiji has proven to be disastrous after Smith had stated that if Labor wins the Australian election, the government will continue to pressure Commodore Bainimarama to honor his promise to hold democratic elections in 2014.

Ratu Inoke said here is a Foreign Minister who under his watch has seen two Australian High Commissioners expelled from Fiji because of Smith's "interference policy" in the sovereignty of Fiji.

The Foreign Affairs Minister say Fiji has been sincere, transparent and open about what it has set out to achieve in it's Roadmap to return to Parliamentary Democracy, and they are fully determined to seeing this through.

He stressed that it is only fair that this be honestly acknowledged by Australia and not through Smith's Foreign policy agenda.

Voting in the Australian elections starts this Saturday.


Story by: Vijay Narayan