Despite recent fractured relations, Australia is proving itself to be a friend in need for Fiji.
Canberra has committed 1000 troops, its biggest ship (HMAS Canberra) and $15 million in aid to help storm-hit communities get back on their feet after the devastation caused by Cyclone Winston.
And with the full impact of the disaster - which has claimed more than 40 lives and left thousands homeless - being assessed, the Australian troops are digging in for a lengthy stay.
How long was one of the topics of conversation between Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama during formal talks in Suva on Monday.
The official meeting was their first since 2014, when Canberra normalised relations a month after Fijian elections confirmed the military leader's rule.
The neighbours have had tense relations in recent years - but travel bans for Fiji government members imposed after the 2006 coup were lifted in 2014.
In the meantime, Fiji has been building ties with Russia and China in defence and aid.
Ms Bishop says the cyclone recovery partnership struck since Winston hit three weeks ago shows why it's important for Australia to maintain strong and close ties with Fiji.
"At a government-to-government, people-to-people level, things are certainly looking bright."
Australian diggers and aid workers helping to rebuild the island nation will remain there as long as needed, the foreign minister said.
"We are in the hands of the Fijian government."
The next phase will be to help the economy by encouraging tourism and getting crops back in for planting.
Fiji's sugar industry took a massive hit and the local price of fruit and vegetables soared.
Ms Bishop said Australia stood ready to be a partner when Fiji needed friends.
"Fiji will not only recover but it will be bigger and brighter than ever before," she told a crowd of students after inspecting their badly damaged school.
