Anthony Albanese stated it is "important that Pacific voices are heard" because the Pacific is the frontline of action on climate change. The Australian government confirmed on Monday that only 14 national leaders would attend the visit to Tuvalu.
Two leaders, José Ramos-Horta from Timor-Leste and Navin Ramgoolam from Mauritius, travelled to Tuvalu from beyond the Pacific. Sitiveni Rabuka, the Fijian prime minister, remarked on Monday night that Pacific stories needed telling at the welcome event.
Rabuka further asserted that the Pacific Ocean "was the engine room of the world’s weather". Fiji's environment minister, Lynda Tabuya, noted that the nation's objective for Cop31 remains keeping the 1.5C global heating limit within reach.
The UN Environment Programme issued a warning that the world risks exceeding the 1.5C global heating target set out in the Paris agreement. Chris Bowen stated that building more renewable energy sources represents the way forward to replace the need for fossil fuels.
