Expectations Anthony Albanese will sign up to fossil fuel phase out at Pacific Islands Forum: Vanuatu minister

Vanuatu’s climate change adaptation minister says Australia ‘is the partner that will hold us back’ on more ambitious action.

Anthony Albanese receives a garland at the Pacific Islands Forum in Suva, Fiji, in July 2022. The Prime Minister will face pressure at next week’s forum to take stronger action on climate change. Picture: AFP

Anthony Albanese will face pressure at next week’s Pacific Islands Forum to take stronger action on climate change, with expectations from Pacific countries Australia will sign up to their “greatest ask” of a fossil fuel phase-out.

As the Prime Minister seeks to reaffirm Australia as the security partner of choice in the Pacific, Vanuatu Environment Minister Ralph Regenvanu warned a “grace period” for Mr Albanese was over and there would be “tough talk” on climate.

“The main concern is Australia. We’re seeing a pattern where Australia has been trying to reduce the ambition in language (on climate action) at the Pacific ­Island Forum,” Mr Regenvanu said on a Friday.

“Australia is the partner that will hold us back. What can the rest of the Pacific leaders … accept in terms of compromise? What can Australia accept in terms of a compromise? But it may be a fact that we have to change the language in the communique to reflect the fact that Australia is not a part of what has been called for.”

Among the key requests from Pacific leaders will be the ­acknowledgment of a “just transition” to a region free of fossil fuels and the approval of an energy commissioner to oversee that transition, as well as ending fossil fuel subsidies.

Mr Regenvanu said leaders “expect and hope Australia will sign up to this fossil fuel phase-out”. “Australia says it’s our friend. And as a friend of the Pacific, we would expect them to sign on to our greatest ask affecting our ­single-greatest security threat,” he said.

Amid calls from elders for ­Pacific Island nations to hold off supporting the Albanese government’s bid to host the world’s biggest climate summit in 2026, Mr Regenvanu said leaders had ­already given their support to Australia’s bid unconditionally and were now considering what they’d like to see come out of COP31.

Vanuatu Environment Minister Ralph Regenvanu. Picture: AAP

Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen. Picture: NCA Newswire/Gaye Gerard

Energy and Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen announced after Labor’s election win last year that Australia would seek to host the 2026 UN climate conference with Pacific nations, to “restore Australia’s reputation and ­increase international engagement on climate change”.

“We will take it that it won the bid on the basis of our support,” Mr Regenvanu said. “Therefore, we do we do need to be involved and our involvement will, or the lack of our involvement will, demonstrate something to the world about what they have managed to agree with us in terms of some of these more difficult conditions.”

Pacific director of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, Auimatagi “Joe” Moeono-Kolio, said he feared leaders would miss an opportunity to push Australia to take climate ­action seriously if there weren’t conditions attached to their support for COP31. “It’s very difficult to push Australia when Australia helps keep the lights on in many of our countries,” he said.

“This is one of the elements that we’re mindful of as we go into the forum next week – mindful of the power dynamic.”