Fiji, Oct. 9 -- Australian Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen says Australia has used the Pacific Pre-COP31 to elevate the region's climate priorities internationally, arguing that vulnerable island countries must have a stronger voice in global climate negotiations.

Bowen said the attendance of 53 ministers, prime ministers and presidents at the Fiji meeting, including a visit by senior officials to Tuvalu, had helped highlight the urgency of climate action and the need for faster access to climate finance.

He said the visit gave major emitters and other countries an opportunity to hear directly from communities experiencing the impacts of climate change.

"We wanted to really make sure that the Pacific, who's been trying t...