Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is to visit Niue and Fiji. File photo. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
Analysis: The Prime Minister heads to Niue and Fiji this morning, for his first trip to the Pacific since taking office.
And as with all of Christopher Luxon's foreign engagements, aside from the traditional bilateral meetings with leaders, it will have a big business focus.
"The Government is committed to deeper and more comprehensive relationships in the region and this visit is an opportunity to reaffirm New Zealand's position as a trusted partner," Luxon said in a statement announcing the trip.
On arriving in Niue, Luxon will meet with premier Dalton Tagelagi, and celebrate 50 years of Niue's self-government in free association.
Niue has a similar arrangement to the Cook Islands and Tokelau - as a country with free association within the realm of New Zealand, its citizens are also New Zealand citizens. In fact, there are many more people of Niuean descent living in New Zealand than in Niue.
According to the 2018 census, 30,867 people in New Zealand identified with the Niuean ethnic group, whereas the 2018 population of Niue was 1,620.
New Zealand also provides aid to Niue, and assists it with its affairs.
In 2022, Tagelagi signed a renewed Statement of Partnership agreement with then-Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
That 2022 agreement had a heavy focus on Covid, with New Zealand supporting Niue in its efforts to remain Covid-free. They also reaffirmed a 2019 agreement, which promised greater co-operation on prosperity, climate change and security.
All going well, Luxon will get to see some of that co-operation first-hand. If the NZDF Boeing 757 can get over its recent woes, it will get to land on and take-off from the recently upgraded runway at Hanan International Airport, which New Zealand contributed to.
Luxon is not the first government representative, however, to visit Niue this year. His visit was preceded by one from Speaker Gerry Brownlee, along with a cross-party delegation of MPs in April.
After less than 24 hours on the ground in Niue, Luxon heads to Fiji.
In Suva, he will meet with Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka (again, not the first government representative to do so - Winston Peters flew out a few weeks after being sworn in as foreign minister).
Luxon and Rabuka will likely discuss climate change and security in the Indo-Pacific - key themes of any Pacific engagement.
"Fiji is a critical partner for New Zealand, as we navigate the increasingly choppy geostrategic waters ahead," Luxon said.
The Pacific Island Forum Secretariat is also headquartered in Suva. Luxon missed out on last year's meeting in the Cook Islands, while he stayed back in New Zealand trying to form a government.
With a caretaker government still in place, Carmel Sepuloni and Gerry Brownlee were sent instead.
While members and officials did not feel snubbed by Luxon's absence, a check-in while he is in Suva is expected.
For the third leg of the trip, in Nadi, Luxon will throw off the diplomacy grip-and-grins and head into business mode.
Luxon was keen to point out Fiji is New Zealand's largest trading partner among Pacific Island nations, and he will want to see what is on offer first-hand.
"There is plenty of scope to leverage even more economic opportunities for Kiwi and Fijian businesses," Luxon said.
Timely then, that a joint Fiji-New Zealand/New Zealand-Fiji business council conference is happening in Nadi while Luxon is there.
With Samoa hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting this year, and Tonga hosting the Pacific Islands Forum, expect this to be the first of a few Pacific missions for the Prime Minister this year.