The Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum, Baron Divavesi Waqa, informed Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar that Israel has been accepted as a Forum Partner. The decision was made at a meeting of the leaders of the Forum’s member states, held in Palau. The announcement follows Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s visit to Fiji in June of this year, during which he met with the Forum’s Secretary General and formally presented Israel’s request to join.
1+Strengthening relations with the Pacific Island nations is one of the Foreign Minister’s priorities. As part of these efforts, Sa’ar inaugurated Israel’s embassy in Fiji’s capital, Suva, in a ceremony attended by Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka. The embassy, headed by Ambassador Maya Yaron, which also serves nine additional Pacific Island nations that maintain friendly relations with Israel. Notably, during the current term, three of these countries, Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Nauru, have opened embassies in Jerusalem.
Under its new status, Israel will participate in the Forum’s Sectoral Partnership Stream, enabling focused cooperation in areas of mutual interest. The cooperation will focus on regional priorities, drawing on Israel’s expertise in water management, desalination, agriculture, climate change adaptation, innovation and sustainable development.
1+As part of the new framework, a Partnership Action and Commitment Plan (PACE Plan) will be developed with Israel. The plan will identify practical areas of cooperation and establish a mechanism to monitor progress in its implementation. Today, forum representatives held their first briefing with Israel on development assistance at the organization’s headquarters in Suva. Waqa hosted Ambassador Yaron and Ambassador Einat Schlein, head of MASHAV, the Foreign Ministry’s international development agency. According to the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA), the briefing covered technical assistance, training programs and water security. Yaron emphasized that partnership must begin by listening to regional countries and their priorities.