Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape on Thursday (8/2) became the first Pacific leader to address the Australian parliament. On that occasion, he vowed not to let anything damage the close relations between the two countries.
The two countries announced that Australia would allocate $100 million Australian dollars — or about 65.3 million US dollars — for Papua New Guinea's internal security, including the construction of police recruitment and investigation facilities and police barracks.
The speech, Marape's meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, and the announcement of details of a security pact signed by the two countries in December, come as Pacific countries confront China's growing ambitions.
Resource-rich Papua New Guinea has rejected an offer from China, whose security agreement with the Solomon Islands in 2022 has raised concerns among some countries in the region.
Papua New Guinea, a strategically important part of the South Pacific, is struggling to overcome tribal violence and civil unrest and wants to increase police numbers from 6,000 to 26,000. Anger over high unemployment and the cost of living led to riots and looting last month in its two largest cities.
Papua New Guinea and Australia “reaffirmed their commitment to the region's existing security architecture as a key driver of security cooperation,” according to a joint statement between Marape and Albanese.
Papua New Guinea is a country where the majority of the population are farmers and has around 800 languages. With a population of 10 million people, this country is the most populous country in the South Pacific after Australia, which has a population of 26 million people.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Marape's historic speech improved Australia's relations with the Pacific.
“We know that China is a great power that is asserting its interests,” he told reporters. “What we are doing is re-emphasizing our role in the Pacific family and the importance of that involvement.”
After civil unrest last month, a number of Papua New Guinea ministers resigned and the under-pressure Marape will soon face a vote of no confidence.
“We must become a strong country that is independent, economically self-sufficient and strong so that we can also help Australia maintain democracy, maintain peace and ensure stability… in our Pacific,” Marape said in his speech. (ab/lt)