Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has just been handed an unflinching mirror at the Pacific Islands Forum.

The National Climate Risk Assessment makes one thing unmistakably clear: there is an enormous amount at stake for Australia from climate impacts.

For Pacific nations, none of this is news. Rising seas, stronger cyclones and dwindling fish stocks have long made them the moral compass and global leaders on climate action.

This is Albanese’s sliding doors moment: lock in a strong climate target, lock in trust with the Pacific, lock in COP31, and unlock Australia’s place as a renewables superpower.

It is a sobering but clarifying moment. We know what’s at stake. Leaders at PIF54, including the Australian prime minister, know how our ocean states must collectively respond.

A defining choice for Australia

Within weeks, the Australian Government must set our 2035 emissions reduction target – a decision that will shape our economy, environment and global standing for decades.

The........

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