United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin visited Papua New Guinea and Australia this week to bolster security ties with the two countries as the United States competes with China for influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
The increased collaboration of the U.S. with Australian and Papua New Guinea militaries was announced as two key U.S. officials held separate top-level meetings in the two countries.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Australia and Papua New Guinea during his eighth trip to the Indo-Pacific region. Meanwhile, the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Tonga, New Zealand, and Australia during July 24-29. Secretary Blinken visited Nukuʻalofa to dedicate the new U.S. Embassy in Tonga and advance key discussions on shared democratic values and vision of a connected, prosperous and peaceful Pacific region. Blinken also visited New Zealand where he held talks with its Prime Minister Chris Hipkins.
U.S. and Australian to boost defense partnership
The U.S. officials, Austin and Blinken, were in Brisbane to attend the annual Australia-US Ministerial (AUSMIN) dialogue with their Australian counterparts Defense Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong.
“Australia at this moment has no better friend than America,” Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles told reporters following the conclusion of the 33rd annual AUSMIN talks in Brisbane, Australia. He added that the four officials had a “fruitful and rich conversation about the state of the alliance” and the state of the world and its volatility and threat.
The United States is our closest ally and principal strategic partner.
— Senator Penny Wong (@SenatorWong) July 28, 2023
Today, I met with @SecBlinken ahead of AUSMIN.
The US is indispensable to our region and we continue to deepen our cooperation to ensure peace, stability and prosperity. pic.twitter.com/CoyzNNUpAr
Austin said the strategic alignment between the United States and Australia has never been greater. “We share a common vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific, and we’re committed to investing further in our alliance to uphold this vision,” he said.
The United States and Australia agreed to bolster defense cooperation. This includes upgrading critical air bases in the Northern Territory and the U.S. military increasing the rotational presence of U.S. forces in Australia which involves Navy maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft to enhance maritime domain awareness in the region.
Reflecting on the deepening defense partnership, U.S. Secretary Blinken said: “In Australia, Americans know they have one of their dearest friends, one of their staunchest allies, one of their closest partners.” He said the two countries have worked closely as allies for over seven decades now, and agreed that the relationship has never been stronger or more important for the United States.
In his speech, Blinken mentioned the Quad partnership, engagement with Pacific Island countries, and AUKUS development as some of the major indications of the growing relationship.
I met with Australian Prime Minister Albanese @AlboMP to discuss how our countries can continue working together to further a stable, free, and prosperous Indo-Pacific. The U.S.-Australia partnership is a long and proud one, and it’s never been stronger. pic.twitter.com/hFmR7LsBHM
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) July 28, 2023
Earlier in July 2023, the first group of Royal Australian Navy officers graduated from the United States Navy’s Nuclear Power School, where they have been trained to safely operate conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines, he shared. Australian Defense Minister Marles also spoke about the optimal pathway for Australia to acquire a nuclear-powered submarine capability under the AUKUS agreement.
U.S. to help Australia develop guided missiles by 2025
According to the AUSMIN joint statement, the United States will help Australia produce guided multiple-launch rocket systems by 2025. The two sides agreed to deepen cooperation on Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise with an initial focus on the potential for co-production of Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems by 2025, the statement said.
“We are pursuing several mutually beneficial initiatives with Australia’s defense industry, and these include a commitment to help Australia produce guided multiple launch rocket systems… by 2025,” Austin told reporters.
The 🇦🇺Australia-🇺🇸U.S. Alliance is an anchor of peace and stability. At AUSMIN 2023, @SecBlinken and I held productive discussions with our Australian counterparts @RichardMarlesMP and Foreign Minister @SenatorWong to ensure we advance bilateral security and defense cooperation. pic.twitter.com/doGVQ2Nuj6
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) July 29, 2023
Exercise Talisman Sabre 2023
The visit coincides with the U.S.-Australia Exercise Talisman Sabre 2023 military exercise along with 11 other nations. the biennial exercise is aimed at advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific.
After the two-day talks concluded, Marles and Austin were set to travel to north Queensland to witness the exercise. The drills, however, were put on hold after an Australian military helicopter participating in the drills crashed into the ocean, with at least four people onboard feared dead.
U.S. Sec Def and Papua New Guinea leaders defense cooperation
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin became the first U.S. defense secretary to visit the island nation of Papua New Guinea (PNG). The visit comes as Washington seeks to boost its military footprint in the region amid fierce competition with Beijing.
In his meeting with Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape in the country’s capital city, Port Moresby, Austin discussed the newly signed Defense Cooperation Agreement. Prime Minister James Marape said: “There is no better partner [than the] biggest democracy and the biggest military for this partnership. It is a partnership of choice that we made in respect to defense cooperation.” He also recalled that Austin’s father served in the U.S. Army in New Guinea during World War II.
The two officials hoped that the new defense agreement will deepen ties and strengthen cooperation and interoperability between U.S. and Papua New Guinea forces. The agreement will allow PNG personnel aboard U.S. Coast Guard ships as they patrol in the region, helping the island nation to tackle illegal fishing and trafficking in its massive exclusive economic zone.
I’m very proud to be here as the first U.S. Secretary of Defense ever to visit 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea. The Indo-Pacific is our priority theater. And partnerships like ours are critical to keeping this vital region free and open. pic.twitter.com/FMNXlJjX4T
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) July 27, 2023
“We’re expanding U.S. participation in several exercises with the PNG Defense Force,” Austin said. “We’ve also completed an important shiprider agreement that will mean greater cooperation on maritime law enforcement.” The Defense Cooperation Agreement also allows the United States to support the continued modernization of Papua New Guinea’s defense force.
U.S. not seeking permanent base in PNG
In the region, the United States defense secretary clarified that Washington was not seeking a permanent base in Papua New Guinea. “I just want to be clear: We are not seeking a permanent base in PNG,” Austin told a news conference in Port Moresby.
The text of the 15-year agreement showed that it allows the staging of US forces and equipment in PNG, and covers the Lombrum naval base on Manus Island where Australia and PNG have a long history of maritime cooperation.
