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India and Fiji on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports.External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka witnessed the MoU exchange.Jaishankar on the occasion said: "I just signed and exchanged the visa waiver agreement. It will be helpful in encouraging greater travel between our two countries."Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka called the MoU exchange a landmark achievement and said positive discussions were held today to further advance mutual cooperation in key areas of development notably in health and education."On behalf of the government of Fiji, I thank the government of India for realising this important cooperation. I'm confident that we will witness many more such initiatives unfolding through the deepening of our cooperation," Rabuka said.As a result of the visa exemption, diplomatic and official passport holders in India and Fiji will now be able to enter, ...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday congratulated Fiji's Sitiveni Rabuka on his election as the leader of his country. "I look forward to working together to further strengthen the close and long-standing relations between India and Fiji," Modi tweeted. Rabuka was sworn in as Fiji's prime minister on Saturday, capping a tense week in a fragile Pacific democracy where the former military commander first held office more than two decades ago. The 74-year-old won the nomination by one vote over incumbent Frank Bainimarama at a sitting of the Fijian Parliament in Suva.
Sitiveni Rabuka was sworn in as Fiji's prime minister on Saturday more than two decades after the former military commander first held the office in a term lasting nearly seven years. The 74-year-old won the nomination by one vote over incumbent Frank Bainimarama at a sitting of the Fijian Parliament in Suva. Rabuka, the head of the People's Alliance Party, was elevated to the position after forming a majority coalition with two other parties following last week's close and contentious election. The tripartite coalition had announced on Tuesday its intention to form a government with a combined 29 seats compared to the 26 held by Bainimarama's Fiji First Party. The People's Alliance Party and affiliated National Federation Party shared 26 seats but were able to form an alliance with the Social Democrat Liberal Party to break the deadlock. Bainimarama, who served as Fiji's prime minister for almost 16 years, and Fiji First had refused to concede the election results in the days ...
Sitiveni Rabuka was confirmed as Fiji's next prime minister on Saturday more than two decades after the former military commander first held the office in a term lasting nearly seven years. The 74-year-old won the nomination by one vote over incumbent Frank Bainimarama at a sitting of the Fijian Parliament in Suva. Rabuka, the head of the People's Alliance Party, was elevated to the position after forming a majority coalition with two other parties following last week's close and contentious election. He will be officially sworn in later Saturday at Government House. The tripartite coalition had announced on Tuesday its intention to form a government with a combined 29 seats compared to the 26 held by Bainimarama's Fiji First Party. The People's Alliance Party and affiliated National Federation Party shared 26 seats but were able to form an alliance with the Social Democrat Liberal Party to break the deadlock. But Bainimarama, who had served as Fiji's prime minister for almost 16
Fijian police on Thursday said they were calling in the military to help maintain security following a close election last week that is now being disputed. It was an alarming development in a Pacific nation where democracy remains fragile and there have been four military coups in the past 35 years. The two main contenders for prime minister this year were former coup leaders themselves. Police Commissioner Brig. Gen. Sitiveni Qiliho said in a statement that after police and military leaders met with Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama they collectively decided to call in army and navy personnel to assist. The commissioner said there had been threats made against minority groups who were now living in fear following recent political developments. Reporters in the capital, Suva, said there were no immediate signs of any military presence on city streets. The military move came after Bainimarama's Fiji First party refused to concede the election, despite rival Sitiveni Rabuka's party a
Vote counting finished in Fiji's general election on Sunday but there was no clear winner, and various political parties are now negotiating to form a coalition government. The election had pitted two former coup leaders against each other. Sitiveni Rabuka, who led a coup back in 1987 and later served as an elected prime minister in the 1990s, emerged as the main challenger to Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, who has held power for the past 16 years. Rabuka's People's Alliance Party and allies the National Federation Party won about 45 per cent of the vote combined. Bainimarama's Fiji's First party, meanwhile, won about 43 per cent. That has left both sides seeking to form a coalition with the Social Democrat Liberal Party. The liberal party's general secretary Lenaitasi Duru told media they were having meetings with both sides. The first round of negotiations was done yesterday, Duru said. "We are expecting more negotiations later this afternoon. He said the party's priorities
A 5.7 magnitude earthquake has been registered near the Fiji island nation, the US Geological Survey said.The tremor was recorded at 20:02 GMT on Friday, at a depth of 557 kilometers (over 346 miles), 231 kilometers east of the town of Levuka on the island of Ovalau.There are no reports about any damage or victims caused by the earthquake, no tsunami alert has been declared.Fiji is located in a seismically active zone known as the Ring of Fire and regularly suffers from powerful earthquakes.