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 Australia |  Tuvalu |
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Diplomatic relations between Australia and Tuvalu were established in 1978, with the independence of Tuvalu, and both countries are members of the Commonwealth of Nations which share a head of state, King Charles III. Australia has had a High Commission in Funafuti since 2018. Tuvalu is not currently represented in Australia at the high commissioner or consular level.
Australia has strong ties with Tuvalu and was one of the three founding donating countries to the Tuvalu Trust Fund and continues as a major donor of aid and technical assistance to Tuvalu. [1] The official currency of Tuvalu from 1966 to 1976 was the Australian dollar, which strengthens the economic bonds between the two countries in particular. Since 1976, Tuvalu began issuing its own coinage (see Tuvaluan dollar) but the country continues to use Australian banknotes as official currency, and the value of the Tuvaluan currency is directly tied to the Australian dollar. [2] [3] In this regard, the Tuvaluan dollar is similar to the Faroese króna's relationship to the Danish krone as the Tuvaluan dollar is not an independent currency but has been assigned an ISO 4217 currency code, although it is treated as equivalent to the Australian dollar.
In August 2009, Australia signed a Pacific Partnership for Development between Australia and Tuvalu at the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders held in Cairns, Australia. Australia was (along with New Zealand and the United Kingdom) one of the three founding donating countries to the Tuvalu Trust Fund. [4] [5]
Australia is a major aid donor to Tuvalu. [1] In 1994, even before the Pacific Partnership between the two countries was signed, Australia donated a Pacific-class patrol boat (HMTSS Te Mataili) provided by Australia under the Pacific Patrol Boat Program for use by the Tuvaluan police force for search and rescue missions and maritime surveillance and fishery patrol. [6] Australia has agreed to provide its maintenance until 2024 as well as training for its operation. Australia's Defence Cooperation Program supports Tuvalu's maritime police force with training, fresh water and supplies. On 7 April 2019, Australia donated a Guardian-class patrol boat that was named HMTSS Te Mataili II, and which will be operated by the maritime surveillance unit of the Tuvalu Police Force. [7] [8]
The government of Australia responded to the 2011 Tuvalu drought by working with New Zealand to supply temporary desalination plants; [9] Australia also provide water tanks as part of the longer-term solution for the storage of available fresh water. [10]
Tuvaluans can participate in the Australian Pacific Seasonal Worker Program, which allows Pacific Islanders to obtain seasonal employment in the Australian agriculture industry, in particular cotton and cane operations; fishing industry, in particular aquaculture; and with accommodation providers in the tourism industry. [11]
Technical and Vocational Skills Development (TVSD) in Tuvalu is supported by the Australian Pacific Training Coalition (APTC). [12]
In May 2023 the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific (AIFFP) approved the payment of AUD$21.4m (US$15m) for a AUD$120.6m (USD$84.4m) Asian Development Bank (ADB) led fund to finance the construction of passenger and cargo facilities on Pacific Islands. The AIFFP funds, together with AUD$11m (USD$7.2m) of in-kind contribution from the Government of Tuvalu, are allocated to complete a project at Niutao and to implement a project at Nui, to construct workboat harbors, including constructing a navigation channel, boat ramp, passenger terminal, cargo shed, as well as shoreline reclamation. [13] [14]
On 09 November 2023, Tuvalu and Australia signed the Australia–Tuvalu Falepili Union, a bilateral treaty which covered migration, climate change, security arrangements and their bilateral diplomatic relationship. [15] [16]
In the Tuvaluan language, Falepili describes the traditional values of good neighbourliness, care and mutual respect. [17] The Treaty addresses climate change and security, [17] with security threats encompassing major natural disasters, health pandemics and traditional security threats. [17] The implementation of the Treaty will involve Australia increasing its contribution to the Tuvalu Trust Fund and the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project. [17] Australia will also provide a pathway for 280 citizens of Tuvalu to migrate to Australia each year to enable climate-related mobility for Tuvaluans. [17] [18]
Under the Falepili Union Australia and Tuvalu agreed to resolve any disputes bilaterally and not "involve any national or international tribunal or court or any other third party for resolution". [15] Australia agreed to provide permanent residency for up to 280 Tuvaluans a year and provide funds to mitigate the effects of climate change. [15] Australia agreed to assist Tuvalu in the event of "a major natural disaster", "a public health emergency of international concern" or "military aggression against Tuvalu". [15] Tuvalu agreed to engage with Australia before "any partnership, arrangement or engagement with any other State or entity on security and defence-related matters". [15]
The understanding of security that is applied in the Falepili Union is consistent with the Boe Declaration (2018) on regional security, [19] which commits Pacific Islands Forum members to commit to core values, including good governance, liberty of the individual, democratic processes and indigenous rights. The Boe Declaration expanded the Biketawa Declaration (2000) to include issues of human security, environmental security, transnational crime, and cybersecurity. [19]
The entry into the treaty has been criticised by Tuvaluan politicians as allowing Australia veto power over Tuvalu's foreign security agreements. [20] [21] [22] Prime Minister Kausea Natano said the treaty was essential in preserving Tuvalu's identity. [23] However, former Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga claimed the Falepili Union would undermine the country's sovereignty and vowed to repeal it should he head a government again after the election. [20] [24] Sopoaga emphasised the sensitivity of conserving the sovereignty of the Pacific Island nations amidst a period where bigger countries, such as the United States and China, are competing for influence in the region. Former Foreign Minister Simon Kofe also criticised the treaty and pledged to renegotiate with Australia. Kofe highlighted Tuvalu's contracts with numerous international companies, including those that provide the country with satellite connections and questioned if it were necessary for Tuvalu to require Australia's permission to engage with such companies. [25]
In his first interview as prime minister, Feleti Teo said the part of the Falepili Union he wanted to revisit that both countries must “mutually agree” on any security arrangements that Tuvalu may want with other countries. [26] In a later interview Teo said that “[i]f there is a way that stops short of revising the treaty that guarantees the integrity of the sovereignty of Tuvalu, then we will certainly explore those options.” [27] Subsequently Teo said he wanted arrangements to guarantee Tuvalu’s sovereignty that "stop short of revising the treaty." [28]
On 26 March 2024, Pat Conroy, Australia’s Pacific minister, tabled the Falepili Union in the Australian Parliament for the propose of obtaining ratification of the Falepili Union. Conroy stated “[t]he new government of Tuvalu has confirmed its desire to proceed with the Falepili Union”. [29] The Falepili Union had been an issue in the 2024 Tuvaluan general election regarding its impact on the sovereignty of Tuvalu. Conroy confirmed that Australia would work with Tuvalu to ensure its sovereignty was respected. Conroy also stated that “Australia commits to assist Tuvalu in responding to a major natural disaster, a health pandemic, or military aggression. This is predicated on Tuvalu requesting such assistance.” [29]
In the 2018 Federal budget, Australia allocated funding to establish a High Commission in Tuvalu, becoming one of only two diplomatic missions in Tuvalu (the other being the Embassy of Taiwan). [30] Prior to the appointment of the first resident high commissioner in October 2018, non-resident accreditation for Tuvalu was held by the Australian High Commission to Fiji (held by the High Commissioner from 1978 to 2014, and the Deputy High Commissioner from 2014 to 2018).
The new High Commission in Tuvalu Road, Vaiaku, Funafuti, was officially opened by Foreign Minister Payne on 7 February 2019. [31] [32]
Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands, northeast of Vanuatu, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna, and north of Fiji.
The politics of Tuvalu takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, whereby the monarch is the head of state, represented by the governor-general, while the prime minister is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government.
From 1916 to 1975, Tuvalu was part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony of the United Kingdom. A referendum was held in 1974 to determine whether the Gilbert Islands and Ellice Islands should each have their own administration. As a consequence of the referendum, the separate British colonies of Kiribati and Tuvalu were formed. Tuvalu became fully independent as a sovereign state within the Commonwealth on 1 October 1978. On 5 September 2000, Tuvalu became the 189th member of the United Nations.
Maatia Toafa OBE is a Tuvaluan politician, representing Nanumea, who served two non-consecutive terms as Prime Minister of Tuvalu. He first served as prime minister, and foreign minister, from 2004 to 2006, from the resignation of his predecessor, Saufatu Sopoanga, until the defeat of his Cabinet in the 2006 general election. From 2004 to 2006 he also held the role of foreign minister.
Tuvalu elects a legislature on a national level. The Parliament of Tuvalu has 16 members, elected for a four-year term in 8 double-seat constituencies. Tuvalu is a de facto non-partisan democracy since it does not have political parties. The political system is based on personal alliances and loyalties derived from clan and family connections. It does tend to have both a distinct government and a distinct opposition. The 16 members of the current parliament are elected from eight two-seat constituencies via plurality block voting.
The Parliament of Tuvalu is the unicameral national legislature of Tuvalu. The place at which the parliament sits is called the Vaiaku maneapa. The maneapa on each island is an open meeting place where the chiefs and elders deliberate and make decisions.
Apisai Ielemia was a Tuvaluan politician. He served as the tenth Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2006 to 2010, and also held the role as Foreign Minister. He was returned as a member of parliament in the 2010 Tuvaluan general election. He was re-elected to parliament in the 2015 Tuvaluan general election. On 5 October 2016 Chief Justice Sweeney of the High Court of Tuvalu declared that Ielemia’s parliamentary seat was vacant as he was not qualified to be a member of parliament, as the consequence of the short time the opposition MP served time in jail following his conviction on 6 May 2016 in the Magistrate’s Court of charges of abuse of office during the final year of his term as prime minister. The abuse of office charges related to payments deposited into a National Bank of Tuvalu personal account. The 5 October 2016 decision of the Chief Justice was controversial as it appeared to contradict the June 2016 decision of Justice Norman Franzi of the High Court of Tuvalu that had quashed Ielemia’s conviction and acquitted him of the abuse of office charges. The appeal to the High Court held that the conviction was "manifestly unsafe," with the court quashing the 12-month jail term.
The Tuvalu Police Force is the national Police force of Tuvalu, it is headquartered in Funafuti and includes a Maritime Surveillance Unit, Customs, Prisons and Immigration. Police officers wear British style uniforms.
The Tuvalu Trust Fund is an international sovereign wealth fund established to benefit Tuvalu, a small, central Pacific island nation, by providing income to cover shortfalls in the national budget, underpin economic development, and help the nation achieve greater financial autonomy. The Tuvalu Trust Fund was established in 1987 by the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.
Feleti Penitala Teo is a Tuvaluan politician and lawyer who is currently serving as the 14th Prime Minister of Tuvalu. He was elected to the Parliament of Tuvalu in the 2024 Tuvaluan general election, with his previous role being the executive director of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).
Kausea Natano is a politician who served as the Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 19 September 2019 to 26 February 2024. He represented Funafuti as a Member of Parliament. He was first elected in the 2002 Tuvaluan general election and served as an MP until he was unseated in the 2024 Tuvaluan general election.
Climate change is particularly threatening for the long-term habitability of the island country of Tuvalu, which has a land area of only 26 square kilometres (10 sq mi) and an average elevation of less than 2 metres (6.6 ft) above sea level, with the highest point of Niulakita being about 4.6 metres (15 ft) above sea level. Potential threats to the country due to climate change include rising sea levels, increasingly severe tropical cyclones, high temperatures, and drought. King tides can combine with storm surges and the rising sea level to inundate the low lying atolls.
Enele Sosene Sopoaga PC is a Tuvaluan diplomat and politician who was Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2013 to 2019.
The Cabinet of Tuvalu is the executive branch of the government of Tuvalu.
Vete Sakaio OBE is a Tuvaluan politician.
This timeline of the history of Tuvalu chronologically lists important events occurring within the present political boundaries of the Pacific island state of Tuvalu. This time line is introduced by the theories as to the origins of the Polynesian people and the migration across the Pacific Ocean to create Polynesia, which includes the islands of Tuvalu.
Samuelu Penitala Teo is a Tuvaluan politician. He is the son of Sir Fiatau Penitala Teo who was appointed as the first Governor General of Tuvalu (1978–1986) following independence from Great Britain. Samuelu Teo himself served as the Acting Governor-General of Tuvalu from January until 28 September 2021. He had succeeded Acting Governor-General Teniku Talesi and remained in office until the Rev. Tofiga Vaevalu Falani was sworn in as the 10th Governor-General in September 2021.
Simon Kofe is a Tuvaluan politician. He was appointed as the Minister for Justice, Communication & Foreign Affairs, in the cabinet of Kausea Natano following the 2019 Tuvaluan general election.
General elections were held in Tuvalu on 26 January 2024. There are no political parties in Tuvalu and all candidates run as independents.
Panapasi Nelesoni is a Tuvaluan politician. He was previously a civil servant, including being the Secretary to the Government. He was elected to parliament to represent Nukufetau in a by-election held on 30 June 2023.
Te Mataili II was received by the Prime Minister of Tuvalu, the Right Hon Enele Sosene Sopoaga at a handover ceremony attended by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade, Tourism, Environment and Labour, the Hon Taukelina Finikaso, the Minister for Natural Resources, the Hon Dr Puakena Boreham, and the Commissioner of the Tuvalu Police Service, Commissioner Luka Falefou.
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