Fiji's Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has made it very clear that he doesn't want any more excuses on climate action from big emitters, including Australia, when they gather for this year's global climate talks in Glasgow.

Mr Bainimarama has previously said that he, and other Pacific islanders, want world leaders to pledge carbon emission cuts of 50 per cent or more by 2030. 

However, he has now welcomed the new climate policy announced by his "friend", Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

Mr Morrison announced on Tuesday that Australia will join the bulk of the developed word in pursuing net zero emissions by 2050, but its formal target for 2030 remains unchanged: a 26–28 per cent reduction in emissions.

But Mr Bainimarama — who will be one of a few Pacific leaders able to attend COP26, the UN's global climate talks that start on Sunday — said he would continue to push for "high-emitting nations to halve emissions by 2030".

He described that as "the only goal that can keep 1.5 [degree Celsius rise in temperatures] alive and keep low-lying island nations above water".

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Other Pacific leaders have been more critical of Australia's new policy, lamenting what they see as a lack of ambition.

The President of the Federated States of Micronesia, David Panuelo, said Australia's announcement was too vague and "not quite clear".

"To me, as a leader [who] sees climate change as an existential threat to our entire Pacific population, it's somewhat hollow," Mr Panuelo told the ABC.

"The more you read of Australia's nationally determined contributions plan, the less you know what they are really going to do," he said.

Next week's talks in Glasgow have been described as the "point of no return" and the world's last chance stop rising temperatures to avoid catastrophic climate events, such as severe sea level rises, droughts and intense storms.

Australia plans to cut its emissions by 2050 through the use of future technology such as hydrogen power and carbon capture and storage. 

Some of those technologies, including carbon capture and storage, remain largely unproven.

Mr Panuelo is not impressed with the Australian government's reliance on such future technology.

"Technology is great, but some technology amounts to, in my view, public relations," he said.

Target not ambitious enough

Anote Tong, a former president of Kiribati, a low-lying atoll nation in the Pacific, said Australia's plan doesn't go far enough to prevent a climate catastrophe for Pacific countries.

"We remain disappointed [because] 2050 [is] still a long way away … I think Australia really is not showing any leadership on the climate issue," Mr Tong told the ABC.

He said Australia's lack of ambition might set the stage for other countries to water down the commitments reached at the COP26 talks in Glasgow.

"What Australia is doing, is encouraging everybody else not to do what needs to be done," Mr Tong said.

"For the Pacific Island countries who really are on the frontline of this of the challenge, this is extremely disappointing. We would have expected a lot more."

However, the Solomon Islands' lead climate negotiator, Chanel Iroi, was more diplomatic, welcoming Australia's announcement.

But, he said, there was still room for improvement.

"I want to encourage Australia to meet the necessary steps … to ensure they continue to take the ambitious actions … because our obligation and ultimate aim is for the global goal … to ensure the 1.5C [maximum rise in temperatures] is achieved," he said.