The Ambassador of France to Vanuatu, Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer, has described a recent article on the position of the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) regarding Matthew and Hunter (Umaenupne and Umaeneag/Leka) as one-sided and misleading in the way it framed the issue.
Ambassador Vilmer said in a press statement that reaching any agreement requires two willing parties.
He said that when French President Emmanuel Macron made remarks during his official visit in July 2023, he was speaking with the then Prime Minister, Ishmael Kalsakau.
According to Vilmer, the two leaders had built a genuine relationship of trust and were both sincere and committed to pursuing the matter.
“President Macron subsequently invited then Prime Minister Kalsakau to Paris on 8 September to attend the opening of the Rugby World Cup and to review progress on the issue. Unfortunately, the PM was unable to make the trip.
“PM Kalsakau faced a motion of no confidence and lost office,” he said.
When contacted, Kalsakau questioned the current status of Matthew and Hunter following PM Jotham Napat’s meeting with President Macron last year.
The French Ambassador said Sato Kilman succeeded Kalsakau, but his tenure lasted barely a month and he showed no interest in the issue.
“He never raised it with me once,” Ambassador Vilmer said.
Former Prime Minister Kilman acknowledged that his term as PM was short and said he did not raise the issue of Matthew and Hunter because President Macron had indicated that the matter would be resolved before December 2023, but that did not happen.
“France is not serious,” Kilman said.
Vilmer said that after Kilman, Member of Parliament (MP) for Pentecost Charlot Salwai became PM and served for nearly 500 days.
“While we engaged with him on a number of bilateral matters, including the Airbus issue, he never made the resumption of negotiations on Matthew and Hunter a priority and never pushed to advance them,” the French Ambassador said.
Salwai rejected the Ambassador’s remarks, describing them as misleading.
He said maritime boundaries, including Matthew and Hunter, were always discussed during bilateral meetings involving France and New Caledonia.
“In every bilateral meeting with France and New Caledonia, maritime borders, including Hunter and Matthew, were always discussed,” he said.
“During the Francophonie Summit in Paris in 2024, I raised the issue of Hunter and Matthew during a short meeting with President Macron, but Macron told me there was no issue.
“I told Macron there is an issue because there is a dispute after New Caledonia declared a marine park over the disputed area without consulting Vanuatu.
“Since 2014, I have opposed this park. At the time, Anthony Lecren of New Caledonia was minister when he came for consultations and I was acting Minister of Foreign Affairs.
“In 2018, I met with the French Minister of Foreign Affairs together with MP Matai, then Minister of Agriculture, and Bruno Leingkone, then Minister of Foreign Affairs.
“We agreed to hold the first round table meeting, but it was interrupted by COVID-19.”
Salwai said that although governments had changed over the years, the round table discussions between France and Vanuatu should not have been affected because Vanuatu’s negotiators are senior civil servants.
He said that if Vanuatu could not settle its maritime boundary with the French territory of New Caledonia, then Vanuatu could not consider itself fully independent.
In February 2023, Salwai signed the “Motalava Agreement” with the then Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare, on the maritime boundary between the two countries.
Ambassador Vilmer said that now that Napat is Prime Minister, and having previously served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs during President Macron’s visit, it was natural to expect him to revive discussions on the matter.
“We invited him to Paris to meet with President Macron in July 2025, and that is where things truly got back on track.
“This time, both sides followed through.
“Negotiators were formally appointed by each party and held their first meeting in Port Vila on 20–21 November 2025.
“We expect to meet again in Paris in the coming months. The question needs to be reframed,” the Ambassador said.
There are reports that another meeting on Matthew and Hunter is expected next month.
One Kanak visitor in Port Vila this week said France was reacting to comments made by FLNKS President Christian Tein because they reflected what supporters believe is the basis of Vanuatu’s claim over the two islands.
The Kanak source said France’s claim dated only from 1963, while the ancestors of people from TAFEA had long historical links to the area before then.
Daily Post was informed yesterday that the next meeting on Matthew and Hunter could be the final round of talks.
If the two countries fail to reach an agreement, the dispute could proceed under mechanisms linked to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
