A Fijian deputy prime minister says the Pacific identifies with Israel in ways many would not understand.
Viliame Gavoka, who is also the tourism minister in Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s coalition government, was responding to a Facebook post about Israel being accepted into the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) as a development partner.
The PIF, which is backed by Australia and New Zealand as its founding members, is the region’s principal political decision-making institution.
“The entire Pacific Islands identify with Israel in ways many would not understand,” Gavoka wrote a comment.
“It’s biblical and ageless and real.
“Are we going to upset some people? Perhaps…but we know that the relationship with Israel is timeless, whereas with others, it’s largely geopolitics and subject to what is fashionable for the moment,” he added.
Both Gavoka and Rabuka are among the most pro-Israel politicians in Fiji and the Pacific.
Israel’s PIF status, which was decided at the leaders’ meeting in September in Palau, required consensus from all 18 Forum members, including New Zealand.
The decision has attracted a range of commentary across the region.
In Aotearoa, ACT leader David Seymour extended Israel “a warm Pacific welcome”, while Labour questioned Israel’s admission to the Forum.
New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said to criticise Israel’s inclusion in PIF is an insult to Pacific Island countries, adding that the decision by the Pacific leaders should be respected.
Former PIF advisor Sione Tekiteki said Israel securing formal recognition through PIF was a way for it to legitimise itself in a region where it has gained much affection.
