AUSTRALIA says its new defence alliance with Fiji is aimed solely at responding to external threats and does not provide for military intervention during domestic political instability.
In an interview with The Fiji Times online portal, The Lens@177, Australian High Commissioner to Fiji Peter Roberts clarified the scope of the Veitacini Alliance, signed alongside the Vuvale Union.
“Our Prime Minister has actually signed two agreements, the Vuvala Union and also the Veitacini Alliance or Ocean of Peace Alliance.
“The Vuvale Union is a cross-cutting agreement saying we’ll co-operate in a whole bunch of areas and that has this work plan that comes with it.
“And the Veitacini Alliance is saying we’ll become allies to each other and that means we’re saying if one of us was attacked or we faced a threat then the other would come to support.
“So, Australia only has this alliance relationship with three countries and Fiji would be the fourth.
“That just means, you’d think this never would need to be applied but if one of us was under threat, we’d be ready to stand there with each other.”
When asked whether Australian troops would be deployed if Fiji experienced internal instability, Mr Roberts said:
“That’s right. It’s a treaty between two countries and it talks about if other parties come and threaten.
“The treaty doesn’t talk about that sort of thing. It’s a treaty between Fiji and Australia about how we deal with threats that come into the Pacific.”
