Why Anthony Albanese is on a 'charm offensive' in the Pacific

Anthony Albanese has made history with a speech to Papua New Guinea's parliament, as his Pacific charm offensive continues.

Anthony Albanese has become the first foreign leader to address PNG's parliament. Source: AAP

KEY POINTS

• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has arrived in Papua New Guinea where he hopes to finalise a defence pact.
• He has also become the first foreign leader to address the country's parliament.
• His visit to PNG is the latest in a series of moves aimed at improving relations with Australia's nearest neighbours.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has taken his Pacific charm offensive to Papua New Guinea, calling for a "family first" approach to security in a veiled reference to growing Chinese influence in Australia's neighbourhood.

But PNG Prime Minister James Marape insists his Australian counterpart did not mention China during a private meeting on Thursday afternoon.

Hours earlier, Mr Albanese became the first foreign leader to address PNG's parliament, continuing a jet-setting first year in office which has already included multiple meetings with Pacific Island leaders.

After warning of the former Coalition government's dismissive attitude to its nearest neighbours, Mr Albanese said a partnership of "equals" with PNG is vital to ensuring peace in the region.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese addressing PNG's parliament.

The address was part of a packed 48-hour tour, with Mr Albanese pitching strengthened ties ranging from healthcare to rugby league.

But central to the trip is progress on a "family first" bilateral security pact, which experts say comes with one eye on China.

Standing alongside Mr Marape on Thursday afternoon, Mr Albanese revealed the pair had committed to a May deadline for the deal, which is set to include deeper information sharing and military cooperation.

"I'm very confident there in the next couple of years, we will build an even stronger relationship between our two nations," he said.

Here's what you need to know.

Is this about China?

Mr Marape denied his Australian counterpart had raised the issue of Beijing's influence in the region, insisting: "PNG's China relationship remains PNG's China relationship".

"Discussions were more centred on PNG's Australia relationship. At no instance was China, or any other nation, brought into the picture," he said.

"Our relations with Australia are ... unique. Every other nation understands this."

Mr Albanese has made improving relations with Australia's nearest neighbours a priority, jetting to Fiji to meet Pacific leaders within months of taking office.

The centrepiece of this trip will be a new defence pact with PNG, a sign of "deep trust" that Mr Albanese insists will boost its military capabilities.

"[It will be] a treaty that builds on the family-first approach to regional security. An example to others and an investment in the future of our partnership. This can be a decisive decade for peace, prosperity, unity and security in the Indo-Pacific," he said.

Anthony Albanese met with Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this year. Source: Getty / Yan Yan/Xinhua

The comments were made against a backdrop of Beijing's increasingly assertive posture in the Pacific, which is experiencing an influx of Chinese investment.

The leaders' joint statement later confirmed they aimed to wrap up negotiations by the end of May, pending agreement from both sides.

Mr Albanese confirmed the "very comprehensive" arrangement would see joint training operations, and shared expertise on cyber security, domestic security, and policing.

"It makes sense for us to have that breadth of security cooperation across the board," he said.

Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst Malcolm Davis says China - the "single most challenging" foreign policy issue in the region - "has to be" an important part of Mr Albanese's dealings with the Pacific.

"Papa New Guinea is a really important partner for Australia, particularly in the context of strengthening its stability, its democracy, and also resilience in the face of growing Chinese influence and presence in the region," he said.

"The strategic environment that we face is being shaped by an assertive China. Part of the process that we're seeing is a China that is very active in the Southwest Pacific."

Why is PNG so vital?

Map graphic showing distance from PNG to the Australian-controlled Talbot Islands, compared to distances between key landmarks in major Australian cities.

Australian national security experts were alarmed by a defence pact signed between Solomon Islands and Beijing last year.

Professor Davis says the deal, which paves the way for Solomon Islands to host a permanent Chinese naval base, is a warning sign for the region.

"What we don't want to see is that replicated in Papua New Guinea, whereby we would then have the potential risk that at some point in the future Chinese forces could be in PNG," he said.

"We are working hard to try and prevent that outcome from happening."

A Chinese presence in PNG would see troops uncomfortably close to Australian territory, with the Talbot Islands - part of the Torres Strait Islands - located just 4km away.

Less than 150km - half the distance between Sydney and Canberra - separates PNG and the Australian mainland.

But after Australian police were dispatched to help quell unrest in Solomon Islands in late 2021, Dr Davis said Australia also has a vested interest in bolstering its neighbours' democratic institutions.

"We don't want to see PNG destabilise as a country, and then have to somehow restore stability," he said.

"So it's [also] about ensuring that Papa New Guinea is a strong, stable, functioning democracy with a viable economy, and is a good partner for Australia in defence and security terms."

Why is the language important?

The tone of Mr Albanese's speech was telling.

He accused predecessor Scott Morrison of disrespecting the Pacific Island nations, something he argued had contributed to Solomon Islands' deal with Beijing.

Mr Albanese has criticised predecessor Scott Morrison's (second right) relationship with Australia's Pacific neighbours. Source: AAP / Mick Tsikas

Mr Albanese was eager to stress the two countries as "equals", particularly after PNG's independence from Australia in 1975.

"Independence was not Australia’s gift to give, it was the people of Papua New Guinea’s right to assert, it was your opportunity to seize ... We are friends. We are mates. We are partners. We are equals," he said.

What else is he offering?

Soft power.

Labor is making it easier for PNG citizens to work in Australia, via a visa program to be extended from July this year.

"Australian farmers and producers benefit from the expertise and industry of your people," he said.

"Just as importantly, the people of PNG earn good wages and develop new skills that they can use to support their families, educate their children and invest in opportunities that will deliver further prosperity for themselves and PNG."

Rugby league is PNG's national sport. Credit: Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images for RLWC

Mr Albanese also repeated his support for a new Pacific Islands NRL team, to be based in PNG.

The prime minister is an avid fan of rugby league, which is PNG's national sport and has a strong following in the region.

"Sport is such a genuine and powerful way of building strong and lasting ties between our peoples, at a code and club and community and family level," he said.

Australia was a major component of PNG's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, pumping more than $20 million directly into its health and disease surveillance systems, while also shipping 8,480 vaccine doses north.

Mr Albanese insisted that support will continue.

"Recent years have provided the world with a vivid reminder that healthy economies depend, above all, on healthy people."