I will attend a Special Retreat for Pacific Islands Forum leaders in Auckland tomorrow.
The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark, has called the retreat in her capacity as Forum Chairman to discuss a report on Forum reform commissioned by leaders in August last year. The report is based on the work of an Eminent Persons Group which consulted extensively throughout the region. It is designed to ensure that the Forum remains well positioned to serve the Pacific community.
Australia and our regional friends and neighbours must and will continue to work closely together towards the common goal of a secure and prosperous region. The Forum has a valuable role to play in achieving this. The dramatic improvements to the situation in the Solomon Islands show that we are able to effect real and positive change in even the most difficult situations through political will and the pooling of our collective resources. The current review offers the opportunity to incorporate these principles into the Forum';s outlook and to extend them to other fields of regional endeavour.