AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE
HONIARA: Britain's Prince William and wife Catherine were set for a colourful Pacific welcome in the lush Solomon Islands Sunday as a row intensified in Europe over the printing of topless photos of the Duchess.
The glamorous royal couple are on a nine-day Southeast Asian and Pacific tour marking Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee, and have already visited Singapore and Malaysia where Kate made her first public comments on foreign soil.
Their Pacific Islands leg begins Sunday in the Solomon Islands with a ocean-themed motorcade and Jubilee Thanksgiving service in the capital's cathedral before a traditional island feast in the Government House gardens.
Excitement has been building for days in the Solomons, where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have two days of engagements, with at least one resort reportedly tidying its palm gardens ahead of the visit.
The royal couple travel from the Solomons for a short stay in Tuvalu, one of the world's smallest independent nations, lying about halfway between Australia and Hawaii.
William and Kate are expected to take part in sporting activities and wear traditional dress when they visit the Solomons and Tuvalu, with warrior dancing and a canoe trip reported to be on the cards.
The Duchess has already revealed her husband's preparations, joking with Solomon Island's governor general Sir Frank Kabui in June that: "William's been practising his dance moves".
"We're extremely excited. Both of us have never been anywhere near there," William said at the time.
Queen Elizabeth, William's grandmother, is head of state in the Solomons and Tuvalu, both of which are members of the Commonwealth, as are Singapore and Malaysia.
The palace said the royal couple "remain focused" on their tour despite the furore after French magazine Closer published paparazzi snaps of Kate sunbathing in just her bikini bottoms by a pool.
William and Kate, both 30, are suing Closer for invasion of privacy over the images, which were reprinted on Saturday in the Irish Daily Star and are set to be published by Italian gossip magazine Chi on Monday.
The palace condemned the "greed" of the Irish newspaper and warned Chi that it would cause "unjustifiable upset" were they to proceed with their 26-page special edition on the photos.
Britain's younger royals are touring the globe throughout 2012 as part of celebrations marking Queen Elizabeth's 60-year reign as they seek to maintain their relevance in a changing world.
The wedding of William and Kate, both 30, in April 2011 was watched on television by up to two billion people around the world and helped breathe new life into Britain's monarchy after years of crisis.
In Singapore, where crowds cheered and photographed the glamorous couple, Prince William, second in line to the British throne, revealed that he wants to have two children with his wife.
And in Malaysia, Kate made her first public comments on foreign soil during a visit to a Kuala Lumpur hospice, where she spoke briefly about the need for palliative care -- a multidisciplinary approach to relieve the physical, emotional and other pain of longtime disease-sufferers.