Kelera Ditaiki 
Fiji is changing the tide on how it defends its people, not just from conflict but from climate catastrophe.
At the 50th anniversary of the Republic of Fiji Navy, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka made it clear, the Navy is now on the frontline of disaster response, climate resilience and humanitarian aid in the Pacific.
The Prime Minister states the region does not need more weapons, it needs presence, trust and a force ready to protect its people when the seas rise and the storms hit.
“Fiji is actively promoting an ocean of peace that unites rather than divides, that sustains rather than exploits, that offers hope rather than fear this concept is not new but one that is deeply rooted in the pacific way of life. The Pacific Ocean is the bedrock of peace, cooperation, resilience, and shared security.”
Rabuka also stated that Fiji’s sailors must now be ready to deploy not to battlefields, but to flooded villages, cyclone devastated islands, and broken supply chains.
He said that when cyclones strike, floodwaters surge, or remote islands are left isolated, the Fiji Navy is the first to respond.
Whether delivering clean water, emergency shelter, life-saving medicine or simply a sense of hope our sailors stand as silent guardians of peace amid chaos. This is more than a naval duty it is human dignity in motion.
Australia’s High Commissioner Peter Roberts said the region was waking up to a new kind of security, one where climate threats, illegal fishing, and shared ocean resources demand stronger Pacific partnerships.
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