This visit has two main objectives: to express solidarity with the Pacific and the Pacific Island States and express our admiration and gratitude to the people and government of Vanuatu.

First of all, solidarity with the Pacific. The Pacific is on the frontlines of the devastating impacts of climate change, but the Pacific has not contributed to climate change. On the contrary, even if the islands are so small that they would never have a meaningful impact, the truth is that we see a lot of investment in the Pacific in renewable energy and in other forms of mitigation that should be followed and copied by some of the most developed countries in the world.
 
The Pacific has the moral authority to request all countries to be able to abide by what the international community and the scientific community consider essential: that temperatures will not rise by more than 1.5 degrees by the end of the century and that for that purpose we reach carbon neutrality in 2050.
 
During my visit to the different islands of the Pacific I’ve been saying time and time again that these objectives are possible and only depend on political will. We have the technologies, the instruments and the money to do it globally – we need the political will to achieve these objectives and that’s why I’ve been insisting on measures like the absolute need to move the taxation of salaries to the taxation of carbon. I’ve been insisting on the need to stop subsidies to stop fossil fuels. I’ve been insisting on the need for no more coal power plants to be built after 2020, and many other measures that are essential for the objectives that we want to achieve to become possible and for the Pacific islands not to suffer the devastating impact that higher rises of temperature would inevitably cause.
 
I just came from Tuvalu and you can imagine the anxiety of the people of Tuvalu seeing the ocean rise three centimetres every year when their highest point is only five metres high.
 
On the other hand, this visit is also to express my deep gratitude and appreciation for the policies that the government of Vanuatu has introduced. Vanuatu is a country that is extremely prone to natural disasters from volcanoes to earthquakes to the consequences of climate change. But Vanuatu has adopted a very effective policy on resilience and adaptation that I believe is also an example to be followed and an ocean’s policy that is absolutely exemplary. If I may, it is for me a very positive thing to see that instead of a plastic bottle of water we have here this bottle that is multi-use, it can be a demonstration that we don’t need to use the so-called single-use plastics. Vanuatu is again giving an example that should be followed by all countries in the world.
 
I have to say that in my office single-use plastic bottles have also been abolished which means that the example of Vanuatu is having some positive impact.
 
So it is important that those good examples coming from countries that are small and are not very rich are recognized and followed globally. On the other hand, we also believe that countries that by their own effort achieve graduation and become no longer part of the list of the least developed countries, that they get the support that they need from the international community and that their vulnerability and sustainability should be taken into account. Countries should not be punished because they are successful in their economic policies but on the contrary that should lead to an enhanced support to their capacity to overcome vulnerabilities that naturally exist because of the external shocks that are affecting them.