Australian-PNG defence treaty: 'one big fence securing two houses'

22/10/2025 5 min
Australian-PNG defence treaty: 'one big fence securing two houses'

Listen "Australian-PNG defence treaty: 'one big fence securing two houses'"

Episode Synopsis

The 31st Australia-Papua New Guinea Ministerial Forum was hosted in Canberra on Monday [[Oct 20]], focusing on the implementation of the historic mutual defence treaty signed between the two countries earlier this month. The 'puk-puk' treaty will see Australia invest millions of dollars in the PNG defence force. A key part of the deal is a taskforce to recruit PNG citizens into the Australian Defence Force, but this has been criticized by former PNG defence personnel who claim the pact is harmful because PNG does not share Australia's fear of China.

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