World
• Analysis
Tuvalu leaders' visit proves a difficult sell as pre-Cop climate summit opens in Fiji
Only two leaders from beyond the Pacific - Timor-Leste's José Ramos-Horta and Mauritius' Navin Ramgoolam - count among the 14 national leaders due to fly to Tuvalu on Tuesday, a guest list Australia confirmed only on Monday after distance, geopolitical ruptures and the pull of imminent talks in Antalya made its invitation a difficult sell. Prime minister Anthony Albanese landed in Fiji on Monday for the pre-Cop climate summit at Nadi, where about 4,000 people have gathered in the Pacific before Turkey hosts Cop31.
By Haut Monde Post
• October 13, 2026
• 3 Min Read
An invitation that proved a difficult sell
The Australian government declined for days to say who had accepted its invitation to visit Tuvalu, the low-lying atoll nation, before acknowledging on Monday that 14 national leaders would make Tuesday's trip. José Ramos-Horta of Timor-Leste and Navin Ramgoolam of Mauritius are the only two travelling from beyond the Pacific. Distance, geopolitical ruptures and the draw of imminent climate talks in the Turkish resort city of Antalya - which leaders were expected to prioritise - made the invitation a difficult sell.
Who is travelling to Tuvalu
Climate change minister Chris Bowen said those making the trip would also include international journalists and the following:
- •EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra
- •the heads of the Asian Development Bank and the Green Climate Fund
- •UN climate chief Simon Stiell
- •Turkey's incoming Cop president Murat Kurum
A taxpayer-cost attack meets the prime minister's defence
Hosting a Pacific climate summit of this size breaks with the usually small and bureaucratic pre-Cop format: Australia and regional leaders argued the setting would help bring global attention to the countries most exposed to the climate crisis. It is also the first UN climate summit attendance for Albanese since he became prime minister more than four years ago.
The prime minister framed the gathering as an important step towards Cop31, saying Pacific voices must be heard because the region is the frontline of action on climate change. On what that means for the countries at the table, Albanese told delegates:
"For many of the nations represented by leaders here it is literally a threat to their very existence, which is why the world must act."
The cost attack came from opposition energy and emissions reduction spokesperson Dan Tehan, who said the attendance figures showed the Fiji conference was a waste of taxpayers' money, calling it a "farce" and Bowen's "vanity project".
Fiji's welcome and its Cop31 aims
Fiji's prime minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, told a welcome event on Monday night that it was important for Pacific stories to be told. The Pacific Ocean, he said, covers about a third of the Earth and drives the world's weather; when the water is warm and an El Niño is gathering, he warned, it could cause havoc in every country.
He told delegates he was not asking them to regard the Pacific with sympathy but to see it as a bellwether indicating the scale of the challenges to come.
Fiji's environment minister, Lynda Tabuya, said her country's aims this week and at Cop31 are keeping the goal of limiting global heating to 1.5C within reach, unlocking faster, fairer climate finance for developing countries and making ocean health a focus of climate action.
Attention now turns to Tuesday, when the 14 national leaders fly to Tuvalu, and then to Cop31, which Turkey will host, with most leaders expected to prioritise Antalya.
