SUVA, FIJI — 5 NOVEMBER 2026
A career in the military is bound to wrap up one day, but the skills that soldiers have acquired during their service can still be useful to them after they leave the Army. Some Fijians who joined the British Army can now witness the new changes in their lives thanks to the recent talks between Fiji and the UK directed towards the improvement of working conditions and rehabilitation of veterans.
Discussions about the issue took place at the RFMF Headquarters, located in Suva, on 3 November 2023. RFMF Commander Major General Ro Jone Kalouniwai held talks with the newly appointed UK Acting High Commissioner to Fiji, Stephen Lysaght, and the incoming UK Defence Adviser and Commander, Richard Bell, to discuss issues of deeper cooperation in the sphere of defence.
One of the points discussed was the military veterans returning home from the UK military. The discussions made it possible to find ways to strengthen the process of rehabilitation and reintegration of former soldiers who acquired unique knowledge and skills during their service period.
There was also a discussion about maritime security, military training, leadership development, improvement of institutional capacity, and how Britain would continue to support Fiji’s international peacekeeping commitments as an area of interest. Some of the other areas covered in the discussions included matters surrounding the advancement of youth development programs, military chaplaincy involvement, and professional exchanges between the armies of the two countries.
At the same time, the importance of the discussions is heightened by the fact that in 2026 it will be 65 years since the historic recruitment of 212 Fijians into the British Army in 1961. In 1961, 200 men and 12 women were recruited into the army, marking a momentous moment in the history of Fiji’s military cooperation with Britain.
The upcoming anniversary is expected to be a formal recognition of the service of many generations of Fijians and their efforts for the longstanding military relationship between the two nations.
In the recent interactions, there has been a solid foundation of cooperation in military affairs. Recently, on March 10, 2026, Fiji’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed at the previous cooperative practices in the field of maritime security and the use of the acquired knowledge of the veterans in the training of young Fijians aspiring to join the armed forces of the country of the United Kingdom.
Fiji wants to capitalize on its military heritage, but more importantly, it aims to ensure that former personnel continue to be active after quitting the military.
The main question now is whether these discussions turn into actionable projects that can benefit veterans in the long term and lay the ground for new levels of Fiji–UK military collaboration.
