Papua New Guinea said Monday it had signed a security pact with Washington that gives US forces access to ports and airports in the Pacific nation, as the US seeks to counter China’s influence.
We are moving from a general relationship … to a specific relationship with the United States. Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister, James Marape, along with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced ahead of the Pacific Islands Summit in Port Moresby that a defense cooperation agreement had been reached.
“Together, we’re working to shape the future,” Mr. Blinken said.
The agreement was signed by the US chief of diplomacy and Papua New Guinea’s defense minister, Wayne Bakri Daki, ahead of the opening of a meeting of the US Pacific Islands Forum, which brought together leaders from 14 South Pacific island nations, in Port Moresby.
The Foreign Ministry said on Monday, a few hours before the document was signed, that this agreement “will enhance security cooperation and further strengthen our bilateral relations (…) and will increase stability and security in the region.”
Papua New Guinea’s prime minister said Thursday that this would allow the United States access to Papua New Guinean waters near the sea routes to Australia and Japan, in return for access to US monitoring satellites.
Mr. Blinken claimed the two countries could ride each other’s ships, share experiences and “better patrol” at sea together.
Experts point out that if this agreement is presented as an agreement aimed at protecting the country’s borders, China’s ambitions in the Pacific Ocean are a major reason for the American commitment in this region.
“Even if China is not mentioned anywhere in the document, it underlies the deepening of relations between the United States and Papua New Guinea,” analyzes Gordon Beck, of the US Institute, United for Peace.
However, Mr. Marab made clear that this agreement would not prevent him from entering into similar alliances with other countries, including China.
Joe Biden, whose uncle died in Papua New Guinea during World War Two, was originally scheduled to become the first US president to visit the South Pacific nation on Monday. But he canceled his trip because of negotiations over the public debt of the United States, and Mr. Blinken took his place.
