Pacific Peace Network Statement
September 2026
The Pacific Peace Network (PPN) https://pacificpeacenetwork.org/ condemns the recent Ocean of Peace Alliance military pact between Fiji and Australia as a significant departure from, and cynical appropriation of, the discourse evident in the original September 2025 Blue Pacific Ocean of Peace Declaration made at the Pacific Islands Forum held that year. That original Declaration expressed Pacific wide community sentiment for peace developed over a number of years while also reaffirming that “climate change remains the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security and the wellbeing of Pacific peoples.”
The Australia-Fiji so-called “Ocean of Peace” Alliance, also referred to as the Veitacini Treaty or Veitacini Mutual Defence Treaty, is the first military alliance Fiji has ever concluded in its history as an independent state. It is only the fourth for Australia, whose previous treaty allies are the United States and New Zealand (under ANZUS, signed in 1951), Tuvalu (under the Falepiti Union Treaty, signed in 2023), and Papua New Guinea (under the PukPuk Treaty signed in October 2025). While Australia entered into the Nakamal Agreement with Vanuatu earlier this year, Nakamal is not a formal treaty. This agreement replaced a 2025 proposal after negotiations were delayed due to concerns raised by the Vanuatu government over national sovereignty.
Almost seventy-five years separated Australia’s first alliance from its second; barely nine months separate its third from its fourth. That acceleration reveals Australia’s not-so-covert agenda to crowd out China’s diplomatic ambitions in the Pacific.
Speaking at the Ocean of Peace declaration ceremony at the 2025 Pacific Islands Forum, then Solomon Islands Prime Minister and Chair of the Forum, Hon. Jeremiah Manele, emphasized the significance of the declaration, saying, “The Ocean of Peace Declaration is a reclamation of our sovereignty and our shared destiny”.
“It is a solemn vow that our seas, air, and lands will never again be drawn into the vortex of great power rivalry,” he said.
The September 2025 declaration aims to promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the region, while also addressing key challenges such as climate change, natural disasters, and socio-economic issues.
Less than one year later, on 6 July 2026, Australian Prime Minister Albanese and Fiji Prime Minister Rabuka announced the Ocean of Peace Alliance/ Veitacini Treaty.
This was presented as a mutual defence pact binding each country to come to the other’s aid “at times of greatest need,” and committing both to consult over security developments threatening sovereignty.
The PPN believes that the Australia-Fiji treaty establishes a quasi-South Pacific Treaty Organization (SPTO), mimicking NATO, which militarises rather than demilitarises the Pacific region.
At a PPN online seminar held soon after the release of the original 2025 Ocean of Peace Declaration, we heard from one of its key proponents, Pacific Churches leader Rev James Bhagwan, and nine other Pacific leaders. All celebrated the adoption of the Declaration while warning of potential misuse and/or abuse.
https://youtu.be/s51ZbzvDQ0A?si=eWqtMc0b_qD8btEL
The Pacific Peace Network joins in strong solidarity with many community members throughout the Pacific to unequivocally condemn the action taken by the Australian and Fijian governments. This action undermines the visionary 2025 agreement for a peaceful region that is intended both to shield Pacific nations from great power domination and to progress denuclearisation, decolonisation, demilitarisation, and climate justice for all.
For more information contact:
PPN organiser 0431597256