France’s ambassador in Port Vila Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer and Vanuatu’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Marc Ati. 6 May 2026
Photo: Facebook / Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer
The French ambassador in Vanuatu has met with the local government to clear up misunderstandings about a diplomatic spat.
The New Caledonian government this week suspended all trade cooperation with Vanuatu, after Port Vila hosted the leader of New Caledonia’s pro-independence FLNKS group.
The move was seen as a lack of respect by the government in Nouméa. According to New Caledonia’s organic law, the president is the only qualified authority to represent the territory in external relations.
Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat, right, and FLNKS president Christian Téin during a meeting on 5 May 2026 in Port Vila.
Photo: Facebook / Ministry of the Prime Minister – Vanuatu
In a social media post, Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer, France’s top diplomat in Vanuatu, said he had met with Vanuatu’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Marc Ati to give a better understanding of the French position.
Vilmer said it was an opportunity to hear Vanuatu’s side of the story.
He said constructive dialogue is possible, provided both party understands the institutional ground rules.
“Our relations are too important to be exposed to this type of incident,” he wrote in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
According to a 2021 news report, New Caledonia was the fourth-largest export destination for Vanuatu goods in 2020, representing 10.5 percent of Vanuatu’s total export revenues for that year.
Vanuatu’s exports to New Caledonia were worth over VT$600 million (approximately US$5.2m), with kava (72 percent) as the major commodity, the Vanuatu Daily Post report said.
