Anthony Albanese says the entry fee for credibility on climate change is acknowledging the challenge but Pacific leaders say they’re being short-changed by Australia.
The warming climate and rising sea levels which pose an existential threat to smaller Pacific Islands nations are key topics being discussed by more than 50 leaders at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa.
Mr Albanese arrived with King Charles and Queen Camilla in the island’s capital Apia on Thursday, with the prime minister set to attend a leaders meeting and hold face-to-face talks with UK counterpart Keir Starmer for the first time.
Tuvalu’s Prime Minister Feleti Teo released a report that pointed the finger at Australia, Canada and the UK for disproportionately high emissions from fossil fuel extraction within the Commonwealth of Nations, compared to their share of population.
Mr Teo branded fossil fuel expansion a “death sentence” with the report saying as wealthier nations benefited the most from coal and gas, they could therefore more easily absorb reductions in fossil fuel production.
Australia was “highly morally obliged” to take further action to reduce emissions and phase out fossil fuels, he said, as he flagged leveraging a landmark climate resettlement treaty between the two nations to pressure Canberra to do more.
Climate change was front and centre for Australia during conversations and at forums with Pacific Islands nations, Mr Albanese told reporters after landing in Apia.
“The entry fee for credibility when it comes to international forums such as this is acknowledgement of the challenge of climate change and preparedness to act on it,” he said on Thursday.
“It’s up to countries like Australia to show leadership – we have done that.”
Pacific expert Meg Keen said Samoan Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa had made it clear she wanted the first meeting held in the Pacific to be transformational with climate change impacts front and centre.
“She wants this to have an impact; they’re trying to be more specific about what they want and how they can achieve that,” Dr Keen told AAP.
Smaller island countries wanted greater and easier access to finances as well as a pathway to reducing emissions and addressing climate threats, she added.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong joined a roundtable with Commonwealth counterparts and met with UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy to discuss an investment network to help smaller states access finance.
A leaders meeting will take place on Friday after the climate-conscious King has been shown the impact of rising sea levels on Samoa, forcing people to move.
Senator Wong said she hoped leaders would discuss the issue of Pacific Islands nations maintaining sovereignty over exclusive economic zones spanning millions of square kilometres of ocean imperative to their survival.
What happens to the size of the zones, which give rights to natural resources, as smaller nations suffer from rising sea levels has been a topic of discussion.
Australia has committed to helping Tuvalu retain legal rights despite rising sea levels under the treaty.
Asked about Mr Teo’s comments about the agreement with Australia, Senator Wong said the world needed to work together to reduce coal and gas.
She pointed to India and China combining for 40 per cent of global emissions.
“We all have to commit to reducing emissions and transitioning to cleaner energy,” she told reporters in Apia.
The foreign minister announced a partnership for climate-responsive agriculture to be developed by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research to address food security in Africa.
“One of the things Australia is good at is agriculture in very dry climates,” she said.
