Australian Defense Minister said that Papua New Guinea had proposed a security treaty between the two countries

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said on Wednesday that Papua New Guinea had proposed a security treaty between the two countries amid rising tensions on the Pacific islands after China signed a security pact with neighboring Solomon Islands. PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkachenko also told that he had discussed the security treaty with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong during her visit to Port Moresby on Tuesday, while Wong told that discussions were “at a very early stage”.
The Solomon Islands have had strained relations with the United States and its Pacific allies since a security pact with China was signed in April. Australia, New Zealand and other Pacific island nations argued that the region’s security needs should be met. “It’s an idea put forward to PNG,” Marles told on Wednesday. “We have made it clear that we want to be as close to PNG as possible. We want to build on the already close military relationship with Papua New Guinea, which we consider to be one of the most important military relationships we have,” he added.
Papua New Guinea is Australia’s nearest neighbor to the north, just a few kilometers away, and a former colony, but with increasing trade and investment ties to China. In June, China failed to reach a broad trade and security pact with 10 Pacific nations, including PNG. Australia and the United States are funding the modernization of the naval base on Manus Island in PNG, following a failed Chinese bid to redevelop the naval base in 2018. Chinese transit navy ships navigate the narrow Torres Strait separating Australia from PNG, and the activity became a flashpoint in February when a Chinese ship fired a laser at an Australian military surveillance plane flying over its northern approaches to Australia.
The Solomon Islands, which shares a maritime border with PNG and Australia, announced on Tuesday it would suspend port visits by foreign navies pending a new approval process. Marles declined to comment directly on whether Australia had been notified of the moratorium on port visits after the US government received notification a week after a US Coast Guard vessel was unable to enter the port of Honara. “We want Australia to become a natural partner for the Pacific countries, that’s not something we take for granted,” he said.
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