U.S. President Joe Biden will briefly visit Papua New Guinea (PNG) during his trip to Australia next month, an official from the southwestern Pacific nation said, in a move that will help boost the U.S. engagement in the region.
PNG’s Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko told reporters on Thursday that Biden is planning to visit the nation’s capital Port Moresby for a three-hour stopover on his way to Australia next month.
Tkatchenko said that Biden is expected to meet with PNG leaders to discuss the economy, security, and climate change, without elaborating further.
The White House has not officially announced Biden’s stopover in PNG. If this goes ahead, Biden will become the first-ever sitting U.S. president to visit the nation.
This will be the first time Australia has hosted the Quad Leaders’ Summit, which will follow a three-day Quad Leaders’ Summit in Hiroshima, Japan, on May 19 that Biden will also attend.
Negotiating Defense Cooperation
The United States has sought to enhance its engagement in the Indo-Pacific region to counter Beijing’s growing influence. In February, PNG sent a delegation to Honolulu for security talks with U.S. officials.“When completed and signed, a U.S.-PNG DCA will be the foundational framework around which our two nations will enhance security cooperation and further strengthen our bilateral relationship, improve the capacity of the PNG Defense Force and increase stability and security in the region,” it stated.
However, the minister said there was no plan to have U.S. warships stationed in PNG and that the deal was more focused on training.
“But it’s a big one that will ensure we have the cooperation agreement that will have both defense forces working together now and in the future for the security of the Pacific region and the region that we live in,” he said.
The move occurred as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in Beijing has been increasing diplomatic efforts in the region.
Beijing signed multiple agreements with some Pacific Island nations last year, including a security pact with the Solomon Islands that would allow it dispatch police, troops, weapons, and naval ships to the island.
The Solomon Islands occupies a strategic position in the Pacific and is less than 1,200 miles from Australia.