Prime Minister, Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama received a courtesy call from his counterpart, Prime Minister of Cook Islands, Honourable Mark Brown, yesterday.
The Prime Minister formally welcomed Prime Minister Mark Brown to Fiji, with assurances of the Fijian Government to elevate cooperation with the Cook Islands in shared aspirations.
He commended the Cook Islands for the establishment of its High Commission in Suva, which will enhance the bilateral relations between the two nations and improve coordination with the multilateral organisations based in Suva.
At the meeting, the two leaders acknowledged prospects for cooperation in Building Back Better through global challenges, mainly climate change and the pandemic.
Potential partnership in areas of economic recovery, trade and investment, education, people to people links were also highlighted at the meeting.
The two leaders discussed collaboration in the lead up to the global climate conference, COP27 scheduled in Egypt in November.
In his capacity as the Pacific Islands Forum Chair, Prime Minister Bainimarama provided an update on the upcoming leaders meeting scheduled in July this year, where the Pacific will celebrate the 50-year journey of Pacific regionalism and launch the 2050 Strategy of the Blue Pacific Continent.
In response, Prime Minister Brown said, “I had a very positive meeting with Prime Minister Bainimarama this morning and we have together instructed our officials to prioritise formalisation of an expanded bilateral partnership agreement to cover transport, labour mobility, trade, investment, education and people to people ties.
“Prime Minister - I’m greatly encouraged by the opportunities available to us and look forward to working closely with you, the Government and people of Fiji to bring those to fruition in the very near future.
“Fiji holds an enviable place in the centre of our Pacific. It is the regional hub for commerce, trade, education, diplomacy and home to many of our regional and international multilateral organisations.”
“As a founding member of our Pacific Islands Forum, the Cook Islands have long recognised the immense value of Pacific regionalism and our Pacific family. Our 2050 Regional Strategy articulates our Pacific Way and Pacific led solutions – it requires our collective engagement and determined fortitude.
“We have always been stronger together, and together we can ensure the recovery of our respective economies and the prosperity of our peoples, long into the future,” Prime Minister Brown said.