Coin Press - Fiji to deploy solar-powered Australian military drones at sea

Fiji approved a maritime security strategy on Thursday to combat transnational crime, including a surge in methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking across the Pacific.

The Bluebottle drone, manufactured in Sydney, is named after a small jellyfish with a painful sting that washes ashore on Australian beaches.

Australia's military uses the small uncrewed boats to quietly surveil its vast northern coastline, powered by a solar mast and wind.

Australia will provide Fiji with Bluebottle drones and training, under a Au$600 million pledge made to Pacific Island countries last month to tackle organised crime at sea, officials said.

"For the good of every country in the region, including our own, we need to work together to stamp out the illicit drug trade," Australia's Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said in Sydney.

"That means working together in a coordinated way in terms of intelligence gathering, intelligence sharing and interdiction," he added.

Fiji also this week announced it was overhauling its intelligence service, with New Zealand's spy agency to conduct a six-month review.

Australian company Ocius has been operating the Bluebottle fleet from a military base in Darwin in northern Australia, and opened an east coast factory in Sydney on Friday as it ramps up production.

The drones earmarked for Fiji will be deployed next year, officials said.

Pacific Island countries with small populations have struggled to patrol millions of kilometres of Pacific Ocean to combat illegal fishing fleets from Asia and the passage of "narco subs" deployed from South America.

As China and US allies vie for influence, the strategically located region has also seen increasing visits by Chinese warships and US Coast Guard patrols.

P.Schmidt--CPN