Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel hailed the love and support she received during her first official visit to Fiji and the Pacific region earlier this month, which she discussed exclusively with The Jerusalem Post on her return.
Her trip came a month after Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka officially inaugurated his country’s embassy in Jerusalem on September 17, 2025, making it the seventh country worldwide to establish an embassy there.
Haskel gave a glowing reflection on her visit, which included key discussions on diplomacy, agriculture, innovation, technology, and even a potential Fijian role in peacekeeping in Gaza.
Pacific countries still standing by Israel, Haskel says
“It was really incredible seeing all the love and the support that we are receiving from these countries, not just from the government level but also from the people-to-people level.”
She realizes the importance of having real allies and friends who stand beside Israel during times of great difficulties: “the bravery, you know, being such a small country, and sustaining so much pressure, diplomatic, economic, and still standing by [Israel].”
Haskel told the Post that she came away from her trip with a real understanding of how many options there are for different collaborations on a business-to-business level and people-to-people level with the countries she visited.
Whilst in Papua New Guinea, Haskel toured one of the farms built by an Israeli company named Innovative Agriculture (Agro) Industry, which began its work in Papua New Guinea in 2011. Its projects include a major commercial vegetable farm near Port Moresby named the 9 Mile Vegetable Farm, as well as other farming, dairy, poultry and greenhouse projects
“I saw what a huge impact the farm had on Papua New Guinea. From a place where Papua New Guinea was importing all of its fruits and vegetables, it has become a place where they actually now export strawberries and certain other vegetables.
“And that happens within just 10 years with an Israeli company. The workers were also trained in Israel and came back, and are now managing it locally, with local communities as well.
“This is a profitable company, and it will continue to grow. It will be a power of agriculture in the area,” Haskel added.
Unlocking Pacific collaboration in a post-war Israel
Big steps have also been made in Papua New Guinea’s dairy industry, which used to import all of its products from Australia, but now produces 80% of dairy products.
“It just opened up to how much more potential we actually have on those kinds of collaborations,” Haskel commented.
While some may have expected to see a decline in interest in collaborations with Israel following the outbreak of the war with Hamas, Haskel says there has actually been an increased desire.
“We’ve had an increase in some of the projects in the last year, and we’re investing in countries that we have interest in, such as the first ones who supported us, who stood beside us during those times.”
Thousands of foreign students come to Israel to study agriculture every year, on a variety of different programs. The Internship in Agriculture Program brings around 4,000 interns to Israel each year from developing countries in Asia and Africa for an 11-month period, where they study modern agriculture.
One part of the trip garnered particular media attention. During a joint press conference with Rabuka in Suva, Haskel indicated that Fiji’s military could play a role in peacekeeping in a postwar Gaza.
“We do trust the Fijian forces,” she told Rabuka. “We know that [Fiji has] very skilled military forces that are neutral, which is something especially important for peacekeeping.”
When asked to expand on her comments, Haskel said it is a sensitive matter, as the future of Gaza is still in discussion, and that the other side wants peacekeeping forces to come from Muslim countries.
However, she reiterated her previous statements that “the Fijian troops and forces are trustworthy,” and that they have “quite a lot of experience, especially in the Middle East and in Africa. They had boots on the ground.
“So they have the knowledge, they have the experience, and they’re really trustworthy. But I do know that one of the requests from the other side is that the forces that will go in to maintain the peace inside will be forces from Muslim countries.”
It is true that Fiji has played a significant role in international peacekeeping for almost half a century. The first time the country provided peacekeepers to an international conflict was in Lebanon in 1978, as part of the UN’s peacekeeping mission to the country. Fiji has also consistently deployed forces to keep the peace in the Solomon Islands, the Sinai Peninsula, South Sudan, Somalia, and others.
Rabuka told Haskel that his country would be ready and willing to help.
“Looking at developments in Gaza, there may again be a similar arrangement coming up for resolution of that problem, and we stand ready to help in whichever way we can,” he said.
During her visit, Haskel and Rabuka signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Digital Security and Cybersecurity between Fiji and the Israel National Cyber Directorate – the first formal collaboration since Fiji’s embassy was established.
“It’s a really interesting step in creating the dialogue between the two countries,” Haskel said.
She also met with the prime minister of Samoa, who was recently inaugurated.
“We have a very special bond, and there are quite a few fields that we can cooperate on, whether it’s agriculture, women’s empowerment, water technology, and mainly security around this region.
“I think there’s great cooperation that we can do together.”
'Similar faith and tradition and culture': Pacific Peoples and Israelis
According to Haskel, part of the reason for the success of her trip was the “similar faith and tradition and culture” of the Pacific Peoples and Israelis.
“The Jewish people here in Israel, we are the indigenous people of this land. The land, the rivers, the mountains, the traditions, those are part of our identity. Jerusalem is not just a city. Every little hill is a part of our piece of history, is part of who we are, of our identity.
“And those communities in the Pacific, the islanders, know it because every part of their island, their mountains, their rivers, is part of their identity.
“They had similar struggles to what we’ve had and endured as well. And so, if there’s anyone that truly understands what we’re fighting about, what we’re defending, and what an incredible miracle Israel is – as the only case in history where, after being expelled, persecuted, attempts of annihilation, the indigenous people of the Land of Israel returned, revived in every aspect, in the linguistic, in the cultural, in the religious, revealing the archaeological sites, the science, the history – [it’s the Pacific Peoples].
“And so it is easier for us to relate one to another. We understand each other’s struggle.”
Since the 1990s, countries such as Nauru, Palau, and Micronesia have established full diplomatic ties with Israel. Nauru recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in 2019, and then in 2023 Papua New Guinea became the first Pacific nation to open an embassy in Israel’s capital.
Voting patterns of Pacific countries also indicate ongoing support for Israel. During the September 2024 UN General Assembly vote calling for Israel to end its “occupation of Palestinian territories,” 14 countries opposed, including Fiji, Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, and Tuvalu. Then, on September 12, 2025, the General Assembly adopted the “New York Declaration,” endorsing a two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Among the 10 opposing votes were Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, Tonga, and Papua New Guinea, while Fiji and Samoa abstained.
Haskel said that she didn’t see much local antisemitism during her visit.
“I met the Israeli communities in those countries, and I have to say that they’re being embraced and loved and cherished.” She noted that it is, however, a “bit more challenging” for the Jewish community in New Zealand.
“It’s very similar to Australia, where many of the Jewish community have been targeted, whether it’s in the workplaces or whether it’s just in the streets. The community is needing to hide some of their Jewish symbols and, you know, they’ve been targeted. But I think that in relative terms, New Zealand, the government, is actually taking some more actions, and in other countries as well.”
Anti-Israel groups – especially those in New Zealand – were less than thrilled about Haskel’s visit. Does the hate bother her?
“The fact is that they’re standing beside the wrong side of history during this time,” she said. “Israel’s not fighting a territorial war. We never wanted this war. Israel wants peace and stability. That’s what we always wanted in Israel throughout its history, and we’ve made huge concessions to achieve peace and stability. This is a cultural war, a religious war that we’re fighting.
“But people continue to radicalize youth, to use different tactics, propaganda. More and more people realize it’s not about Israel and the Palestinians. This is about Western liberal democracies versus radical jihadists.
“This is about whether you will be standing on the side that is waving your flag, the Australian flag, the New Zealand flag, the British flag, the American flag, proudly, or the side that burns it and steps on it. And that’s the kind of decision that today those communities need to make.”