July 6, 2026 — 10:32amAustralia and Fiji have struck a new defence alliance in a major victory for the Albanese government as it seeks to limit China’s influence in Pacific security affairs.The Ocean of Peace defence pact goes further than most analysts expected and means Australia has added a fourth formal treaty ally on top of the United States, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.Prime Minister Anthony Albanese with Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka in Fiji yesterday.XPrime Minister Anthony Albanese signed the deal with Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka during a visit to the capital Suva on Monday morning.The Ocean of Peace alliance between Australia and Fiji, which contains mutual defence obligations, is expected to be open to the three other Pacific nations with militaries: Tonga, PNG and New Zealand.The new defence alliance comes on top of the widely flagged Vuvale Union economic and policing agreement that Albanese and Rabuka also signed on Monday.Foreign Minister Penny Wong has said Australia and China are in a “permanent contest” in the Pacific, while other senior Australian officials have spoken of being in a daily “knife fight” with China.The alliance follows a less ambitious agreement Albanese struck with Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat last week, and kicks off a busy week of diplomacy that includes a visit to Brisbane by key Pacific leaders and a visit to Melbourne by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.More to comeCut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter.From our partners