Prime Minister of the Independent State of Samoa-Honourable Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi,
Cabinet Ministers,
Excellencies and Members of the Diplomatic Corp,
Invited Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen.

Bula Vinaka and a very good evening to you all.

It is wonderful to be here tonight alongside my friend, Prime Minister Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi, and his delegation, following our meeting this afternoon.

Prime Minister, on behalf of every Fijian, allow me to formally welcome you to Fiji. Tonight, we honour the legacy of friendship that has existed between our people for the generations of recorded history, and long before. Your visit is a testament to that common history, to our friendship and to the future that the Fijian and Samoan people share as Pacific Islanders.

Our discussions this afternoon have helped ensure that whatever that future holds, we will meet those challenges side-by-side and that we will build new and stronger bridges of cooperation to connect our people and our economies and that carry our voices and our perspectives to the rest of the world, loudly, clearly and together.

Prime Minister, when it comes to our relationship, as fellow Pacific leaders, we know that our rivalries remain on the rugby field. Because unlike the Sevens World Series or the Pacific Nations Cup, we know, in regional leadership, there is no one winner and there is no first-place trophy. The only prize that matters is the future we secure for our people: for Fijians, for Samoans, and for every Pacific Islander.

When Fiji and Samoa succeed in protecting the interests of our citizens, we share those victories. And when our people are setback by cyclones, when they are threatened by rising seas, or their livelihoods are erased by the degradation of our oceans and reefs, that is loss and heartbreak we suffer together.

When Fiji and Samoa assume global leadership, when we welcome global gatherings or when we speak in global forums, we speak for Fijians, we speak for Samoans, we speak for Tongans, Tuvaluans, and Solomon Islanders, and we speak for every woman, man and child in the Pacific. And there are few better examples of that than the Fijian Presidency of COP23, which I’ve worked from the very beginning to make a Pacific Presidency through and through.

Those in this room know that the Paris Agreement is of vital importance to our region and there can be no backward steps taken in achieving its most ambitious goals. Your support of my presidency and of that mission has been critical. Alongside our fellow leaders in the Pacific, we’ve presented the world with a united front, we’ve asserted the full brunt of our moral authority – as vulnerable nations and as action leaders – on this issue, and, at the negotiations themselves in Bonn last year, we put the Pacific perspective at the forefront of the global climate negotiations. There, we moved forward the implementation of the Paris Agreement, and we scored a number of other major victories, including the launch of the Ocean Pathway Partnership, and that of the Talanoa Dialogue process.

I thank Samoa and your Deputy Prime Minister for your contribution at our Climate Action Pacific Partnership Event in Suva last month. This was truly a Pacific Talanoa for Resilience, Ambition and Urgency where we highlighted the power and potential of the Talanoa Dialogue in raising the ambition of our commitments under the Paris Agreement. As you know, there is only one clear path to limiting the rise of global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and that will involve every nation stepping up their NDCs to realise far more stringent emissions targets and undertake far more serious efforts to build global climate resilience.

We have a busy September ahead of us, at both the California Global Climate Action Summit and then at the UNGA in New York, where similar Talanoa Dialogue processes will be taking place. There, we will build more momentum for this global movement that will set the tone for the negotiations in Poland at COP24, and beyond.

Prime Minister, action on climate change is priority number one. We know that. But while we face an unprecedented threat, that hasn’t shaken our focus on our national development, our people’s well-being, on bringing jobs to our countries and on growing our economies. We still see the potential of the Pacific to emerge as a global leader in sustainable development, and to bring more of our people into the fold of the global economy by bringing new industries, new technologies and new opportunities to our shores.

Our trade ties are strong, and we’re looking to build on that success through improvements to the Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement, along with the signage of the “Development Cooperation Agreement” between our countries, which I believe is the best next step to realising the untapped potential of our political and economic engagement. We can also do more on a bilateral basis, as we have seen in the successful relationship between Fiji Airways and Samoa Airlines.

Prime Minister, I look forward to taking our economic cooperation to the next level. But we know our nations are bonded by far more than trade, we have a special connection that is built on a foundation of culture, history and memory found only here in the Pacific. Our people are linked by the way of life and the many traditions we share, our young people study together in our institutions, and we are proud to have many Samoans who live and work here in Fiji, making a contribution to our development and progress which every Fijian appreciates.

As Commonwealth members, as champions on climate change and oceans preservation, as committed partners in regional security and development, our successes are collective, and our future is shared. For those reasons, and so many others, I know our nations shall always remain totally and completely committed to each other’s success.

It is in that spirit that I propose a toast:

To the ever-lasting bond of friendship between the Government and peoples of the Independent State of Samoa and the Republic of Fiji.