BY IRWIN ANGIKI
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is set to visit and celebrate Solomon Islands 48th independence anniversary.
This is part of PM Albanese’s three-day visit to the Pacific from July 5-7 where he will first visit Fiji before heading over to meet his counterpart, Prime Minister Matthew Wale in Honiara on July 7.
PM Wale will be leading the nation in celebrating its 48th independence anniversary on July 7.
The PM Press Secretariat confirmed this to Island Sun yesterday. The Australian high commission could not comment when sought yesterday.
During his visit to Australia from May 31 to June 6, PM Wale met with PM Albanese on June 3 at the Parliament House in Canberra, where the two leaders held bilateral talks, the highlight of which was securing a new bilateral comprehensive treaty on security and economic growth.
Wale officially welcomed Albanese’s intent to visit the Solomon Islands after Albanese expressed his formal intent to visit Honiara in the near future.
PM Wale warmly welcomed the upcoming visit, noting that a direct leader-level trip to Honiara will serve as a crucial step towards further cementing the newly elevated partnership and comprehensive treaty negotiations between the two nations.
Australia being Wale’s first country to visit in his inaugural international engagement signalled a positive direction in the two countries’ relations, with PM Wale describing it as a necessary ‘reset’ to repair a relationship that had fallen into a state of distrust over the past few years.
July 7 will be PM Wale’s first anniversary celebrations as Solomon Islands’ prime minister.
Photo credit: SIG
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