Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese conducted a significant meeting with Pope Francis in Rome, marking the first papal audience with an Australian Prime Minister in 16 years.

The discussions between Mr. Albanese and Pope Francis centered on global conflicts, religious freedoms, and mutual concerns regarding humanitarian issues.

During the meeting, Mr. Albanese presented the Pope with an artwork by Indigenous artist Amanda Westley, a piece representing the Ngarrindjeri people.

Westley expressed her pride in having her work chosen, emphasizing the cultural significance of the gift.

"I was very excited, I'm super proud, but the drive to work gave me a little bit of time to reflect, and I think I'm particularly proud that it's Ngarrindjeri art.

All the art that could have been chosen from around Australia, it's Ngarrindjeri art that got gifted.

So yeah, I'm really proud about that," she stated.

In reciprocation, Pope Francis blessed Mr. Albanese's mother's rosary beads as a gesture of goodwill.

Mr. Albanese took the opportunity to formally invite the Pope to visit Australia in 2028 for a significant Catholic conference.

The meeting in Vatican City concluded Mr. Albanese's visit to Rome, which included discussions with leaders such as the Presidents of the European Union and Ukraine, along with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Following his visit to Rome, Mr. Albanese boarded a flight to Singapore, where he met with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

The Prime Minister praised the long-standing friendship between Australia and Singapore, noting, "I look forward to continuing to work together; 60 years of friendship we celebrate this year, and I think that middle powers in the context of the turbulence of the world, as well, have to step up."

As Mr. Albanese wraps up his first international trip since his re-election, Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong is currently in the Pacific region.

In a meeting with her Fijian counterpart, Wong reaffirmed Australia's commitment to foreign aid amid recent cuts from the United States.

She announced a new allocation of four million dollars to support Fiji's HIV response efforts.

Wong highlighted Australia’s role as a reliable partner in the Pacific, stating, "Australia is a partner Fiji can count on.

Australia is a partner the Pacific can count on.

We are the largest and most comprehensive partner in the region and we have lifted our development assistance to record levels to more than 2.1 billion dollars to the Pacific, and we have recognized the global aid cuts and the effect of those."

Discussions also encompassed labor mobility, specifically in light of concerns about the treatment of Pacific workers within the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme.

Wong addressed these issues, underscoring the Australian government's commitment to ensuring fair treatment of workers, saying, "We want the PALM scheme to work for you, your country, and your people, and that's where we start from.

Secondly, we're a Labor government, we represent working people, our history is in the Labor movement, we always work to try and ensure workers are well treated, that they are properly paid, that health and safety are observed, and we will continue to do that."

Additionally, Wong reiterated Australia’s commitment to addressing climate change impacts, acknowledging the nation’s historical reliance on fossil fuels and the necessity for a transition to a more sustainable economy.

"We have been historically a very fossil fuel dependent economy, a very emissions intensive economy.

So we have to transform it, and that is a big task.

I often liken it to a large ship being turned.

That's what we have to do."