Sending NZ troops to Fiji unlikely, says Key

John Key

New Zealand is unlikely to be asked to send troops to Fiji, the Prime Minister said yesterday.

During an interview yesterday morning, John Key had raised the possibility of sending troops, but last night he was damping down any expectation of New Zealand military involvement, saying that while he had said it was possible, he did not think it would be required.

"Of course, New Zealand could always be asked by a multilateral agency like the United Nations to do that. That was the case in East Timor. I am not anticipating that but that would be the sort of circumstance."

New Zealand would not act in isolation.

Mr Key disagreed that mentioning the possibility of troops could fuel antagonism with the Suva regime as he had simply given a hypothetical example and could not control how it was reported. "There's always a situation where it's possible but it's not likely."

The loss of Fiji's constitution, media freedom and judicial system and the freefalling economy were tragic, he said.

"I can't see how any of that can be of any good to the people of Fiji."

Mr Key said he understood the situation in Fiji was stable. "We think people should be cautious in their travel arrangements to Fiji but at this point it's stable."

Foreign Minister Murray McCully said yesterday that the Government was considering strengthening sanctions against Fiji but would not impose tourism and trade restrictions.

"Sacking the judges, clamping down on personal freedoms, media freedoms, it doesn't get much worse than that," he said.

"That's a traditional mould for a military dictator and it hasn't had a happy ending anywhere in the world."

Fiji's President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo, scrapped Fiji's constitution and fired the judiciary this month after three Appeal Court judges ruled the military takeover in 2006 was illegal.

Self-appointed Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama was re-appointed prime minister and issued decrees which included media censorship and immunity from prosecution for soldiers.

He won't hold elections until reforms have been implemented to change the system, and the timeline has been extended to 2014.

Commodore Bainimarama yesterday appointed nine new magistrates to replace some of those fired by his Government.

The Fiji Today blog said those selected had sworn "oaths of treason" by supporting an illegal government.

- NZPA, AAP