Rewa High Chief and former United Nations security executive Ro Naulu Mataitini has warned that Fiji is “undermining our own diplomats” by sidelining them in foreign-policy decision-making and allowing foreign envoys to exert outsized influence in Suva. In a blunt social media statement on 27 April, Mataitini said political behaviour and a lack of strategic focus have eroded Fiji’s ability to defend its national interests as global powers expand their presence across the Pacific.
Mataitini told followers that Fiji’s foreign policy “has suffered for years” as other countries establish a strategic footprint in the islands. “New embassies are opening. Non-resident ambassadors are flocking to Suva. They see Fiji as a platform for influence in the Pasifika. They send their best people. They resource them properly,” he wrote, urging Fijians to ask whether Fiji is matching that effort abroad. “Do we place the same priority on our ambassadors in Canberra, Beijing, Wellington or Washington? The honest answer is no.”
The chief called into question whether Fiji is properly resourcing its diplomatic missions or reducing them to “protocol and consular offices,” and whether Fiji’s Heads of Mission are being fully leveraged. He warned that foreign envoys in Suva “—with unfettered access to our ministers—shape our policy to their advantage,” and urged a strategic reset in how Fiji engages internationally “especially now.”
Mataitini singled out Australia as a stark example of the imbalance, saying Fiji has “now had three Australian High Commissioners who exerted and continue to exert enormous influence over our government.” He added that the current Australian high commissioner is “selling Australia’s interests brilliantly,” and asked rhetorically whether Fiji is advancing its own interests in Canberra or merely being shaped by others’ policies.
His critique also targeted the political class at home, arguing that elected officials too often succumb to ceremonial glorification and external flattery, losing the humility and accountability necessary for sound foreign policy. “To get elected, they will promise anything. But once inside Parliament, too many follow their worst instincts,” Mataitini wrote, characterising this pattern as damaging to party reputations and national governance.
The Rewa chief’s intervention comes amid heightened international competition in the Pacific and wider concerns about geopolitical influence and economic vulnerabilities. Pacific governments have recently been monitoring global developments — including turmoil in the Middle East and its effects on oil prices and supply chains — that underscore the strategic importance of strong, well-resourced diplomacy. Mataitini’s comments are the most forceful public critique from a traditional leader and former UN official to date, pressing the government to explain how it will respond to what he describes as declining strategic capacity.
The Fijian government has not publicly replied to Mataitini’s statement, and there was no immediate comment from the Australian high commission in Suva. Mataitini’s call for a “strategic reset” adds fresh pressure on policymakers to outline how Fiji plans to bolster its diplomatic footprint and ensure its missions are empowered to protect and promote national interests as foreign engagement in the region intensifies.