Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese clashed with a Channel Seven journalist during a stopover in Palau, accusing him of being "very disrespectful" to Pacific leaders after being questioned about the multi-million-dollar cost of a climate summit in Fiji. The exchange highlights growing scrutiny of government spending on the pre-COP31 gathering, with Albanese defending the expenditure as essential to Australia's regional diplomacy and national security interests in the Pacific.

The four-day pre-COP31 talks, taking place in Nadi from 5 to 8 October, are expected to cost more than $20 million overall, including a $5.6 million accommodation bill already being covered by Australian taxpayers. Reporter Josh Martin pressed Albanese on whether the spending represented value for money, noting only five non-Pacific leaders — from Thailand, Antigua and Barbuda, Cabo Verde, the Maldives and Timor-Leste — had confirmed attendance, with the US, UK and China yet to commit. Albanese argued the cost was justified as an "entry fee for credibility" in the region, insisting no Pacific leader had criticised Australia's involvement. The Fiji talks were arranged as a consolation after Turkey beat a joint Australia-Pacific bid to host the main COP31 summit in Antalya this November.