Australian assistance the subject of talks between Fiji and Australia

The Australian assistance for Fiji's COP23 presidency has been the subject of talks in Sydney between the Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama and his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull.

The Prime Minister is in Australia for a four day visit and left soon after arriving to meet Turnbull at his home in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

Bainimarama told Turnbull that it was critical to preserve the multilateral consensus contained in the Paris Agreement for decisive cuts in carbon emissions to arrest the current rate of global warming and reduce the impacts of climate change, including extreme weather events such as Tropical Cyclone Winston.

He says Fiji had deeply appreciated Australian assistance in the wake of the devastation caused by Winston last February.

The PM also asked Turnbull to use his influence with countries like New Zealand and Japan to fully support Fiji's leadership of the ongoing UN climate change negotiations in Bonn, Germany, in November.

During his visit to Australia, the Prime Minister will deliver the keynote address at the 4th Australasian Emissions Reduction Summit in Melbourne today.