McCully to visit Fiji for MCG

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully will travel to Fiji today to chair a meeting of the Pacific Islands Forum Ministerial Contact Group (MCG).

“The MCG is the Pacific’s primary vehicle for engaging with Fiji on elections progress,” Mr McCully says.

The MCG will meet a range of government and non-government representatives to get a broad picture of recent developments in Fiji.

New Zealand, along with Australia and the European Union, is providing technical and financial assistance for the upcoming elections and is considering other ways to assist Fiji’s return to democracy.

“New Zealand has progressively eased sanctions as Fiji moves closer to credible elections. Last year we formally lifted all sporting sanctions and we intend to continue to review sanctions as further progress is made toward free and fair elections,” Mr McCully says.

The MCG is made up of ministers from Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

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