Sitiveni Rabuka. 10 December 2024 Photo: Facebook / Office of the Prime Minister, Republic of Fiji
Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka will deliver a prayer at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington this week.
The Fiji government said Rabuka was invited as a guest and had been formally requested to deliver a prayer at the event's opening dinner.
The National Prayer Breakfast, organised by the National Prayer Breakfast Foundation and the US Congress, is an annual event, described by NPR as "a serene, bipartisn event full of spiritual reflection".
"But over the years, the breakfast has also been a source of controversy - full of shadowy fundraising, behind-the-scenes lobbying and even infiltration by a Russian spy," according to a report by the non-profit media organisation on 2 February.
Rabuka, who has stated previously that he supports President Donald Trump because of his support for Israel, said he was looking forward to meeting with US lawmakers and other high-profile guests "for a time of fellowship, and to reaffirm our support for democratic stewardship".
"Whether President Trump will attend in person or join virtually from his office, I do not know. But I'm looking forward to that," he was quoted as saying by The Fiji Times.
The Fijian government said Rabuka will also attend a series of high-level bilateral meetings, including one with Congressman Ed Case, the chair of Congressional Pacific Islands Caucus to discuss America's relations with Fiji and other Pacific Island nations.
He will also meet with the Fijian diaspora in Washington and California to provide updates on the nation's progress over the past two years since the Coalition government took office, the government said.
