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Anthony Albanese was left rather pink-faced when he arrived at a press conference with other Pacific nations’ leaders wearing the wrong Hawaiian shirt.

The Prime Minister clearly missed the memo when he attended a meeting during the Pacific Islands Forum in Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands, on Wednesday night. Albanese stood out in a vibrant pink floral shirt, while the other leaders wore a more reserved navy blue.

When the leaders faced questions from the press, an embarrassed Albanese exited the room, captured by ABC footage. Moments later, he returned wearing the correct shirt, much to the amusement of Mark Brown, the Cook Islands’ Prime Minister.

Albanese briefly smiled before maintaining a serious demeanor. Yet, the teasing continued. New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon remarked that his counterpart ‘made some mistakes yesterday on his shirt selection so I was just reminding him of it’.

In response to whether Albanese’s choice was an indication of Australia ‘being the big dog and thinking they can do whatever they want’, Luxon seized the chance to tease his neighbors. ‘No, I think he just forgot the instructions to be honest, but you know, you’ve got to reiterate quite a lot to the Australians what they need to be doing and the rules sometimes,’ Luxon quipped.

Earlier, Albanese shared a ‘family photo’ with the other leaders, all donning the same shirt. ‘When we work together, our whole region is stronger. I’m proud to be in Solomon Islands for the Pacific Islands Forum this year, to help shape a more prosperous, and secure region,’ he captioned the post.

The Pacific Islands Forum is an annual meeting of 18 Pacific Island countries and territories, including Australia and New Zealand, to discuss climate change, economic ties and security pacts. The Pacific leaders are pushing to co-host the 2026 United Nations COP climate talks over a competing bid from Turkey.

Albanese said he and his counterparts at the Pacific Islands Forum were universally aligned on bringing the United Nations environmental summit climate-vulnerable region. The Labor government had been hoping to sign a new $500 million economic and security treaty with Vanuatu before the Pacific Islands Forum but it has been postponed over concerns about infrastructure funding from China.