Prime Minister John Key has touched down in Suva the place he was greeted by his Fijian counterpart, Frank Bainimarama.
It was a heat welcome with a one hundred man guard of honour, banners with Mr Key’s face, and a welcome message adorning the streets into the Suva Metropolis centre, with youngsters lining these streets waving on the motorcade.
Mr Key was given an identical Fijian shirt and handled to a SevuSevu — a standard Fijian welcome just like a powhiri.
Mr Key was gifted a pig, and provided up kava — he says he requested for a half cup, however they dished up a full one.
That is the primary assembly on both’s residence soil because the army chief, Mr Bainimarama, took energy by means of a coup in 2006.
The individuals of Fiji then democratically elected him into energy in 2014 — and since then the connection has been warming — with a lot of conferences between the overseas ministers.
However there’s nothing just like the temperatures of the Pacific to even additional heat a frosty relationship.
Mr Key was greeted by Mr Bainimarama as he disembarked the Air Pressure aircraft, earlier than a one hundred man guard of honour.
There’ll shortly be a State banquet hosted by Mr Bainimarama, and each males will tackle the delegation.
However tomorrow is when issues get right down to enterprise — they may have a half hour assembly.
Mr Key plans to speak commerce and improvement.
A part of that’s our Improvement Help Programme with Fiji, serving to with agricultural improvement in addition to authorities help whereas the nation absolutely transitions to democracy.
The pair will even talk about the Cyclone Winston restoration course of, during which New Zealand has performed an enormous half.
There’s additionally the thorny topic of a lot of New Zealand journalists who have been banned from the nation throughout occasions of unrest. Mr Key hopes to boost this with the Fijian Prime Minister.
They will tackle the media after their talks, nevertheless we cannot get to know what Mr Bainimarama actually thinks — no questions are allowed to be requested of him.
Whereas in Suva, Mr Key may also be making a go to to the HMNZS Otago, which has been stationed in Fiji to help with fisheries patrolling.
From there he’ll head to Naiyala Excessive Faculty — a type of devastated when Cyclone Winston ripped by way of Fiji killing forty four individuals.
The New Zealand Defence Pressure has helped with the rebuild of the varsity.
Newshub.