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 【Hotspot】Papua New Guinea reportedly preparing to join China's free trade agreement in APEC

Following Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato's recent trip to Beijing, where he met with his Chinese counterpart, it is believed that Papua New Guinea intends to sign a free trade agreement with China.

Last Friday (April 13), Mr. Pato met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. During the APEC annual meeting that PNG hosted in November of this year, the two sides reportedly discussed the possibility of signing a free trade agreement. Wang Yi said that Beijing is ready to strengthen bilateral coordination and cooperation with PNG within the framework of APEC, as reported by China's official media, Xinhua News Agency. Additionally, he mentioned that President Xi Jinping will attend the APEC Economic Leaders Summit in PNG in November. The "Belt and Road" initiative should be used as an opportunity to strengthen cooperation between the two countries as they enter a new era. On the China Free Trade Agreement Network website, PNG is now one of the "countries under consideration" listed. Fiji and PNG are also included in this list. There is no additional information about the talks' status on the website.

We welcome this Papua New Guinea Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato:

The decision is made amid debate regarding China's aid programs' efficacy and its growing influence in the Pacific. Mr. Pato told ABC's The World program prior to the meeting that PNG welcomed Chinese aid. He stated, "We welcome that China is a developing country that is expanding its policy of providing aid not just in the Pacific but around the world." "Obviously there may be challenges due to the timing of their [China's] decisions to provide aid, particularly in the infrastructure sector, and the fact that we are so new to this partnership, but those are things we are going to work through together," the spokesperson continued. The Post Courier reports that when Mr. Xi visits PNG in November, they are likely to sign a memorandum of understanding. The Post Courier reported that the two foreign ministers also discussed reducing the cost of visas for diplomats and officials from the Chinese and PNG governments. "The strategy that everyone follows"

The announcement comes just a few days after two significant Chinese aid projects as part of the Belt and Road Initiative opened in Port Moresby. PNG Chamber of Commerce executive director Douveri Henao stated that China was not alone in its efforts to increase its influence in the Pacific through infrastructure projects, despite the Australian government's previous reservations regarding these endeavors. Mr. Henao stated on the Pacific Beat radio program, "This is the playbook that everyone is using, I don't think it's just the Chinese."

He was happy about the possibility of China and PNG signing a free trade agreement. “We would welcome it because it improves our supply chain if the Silk Road route could be extended further down from Myanmar, Vietnam, into Indonesia, and then into PNG. It enhances our export value chain to the region's largest market, he stated. "From the perspective of PNG, we are in sync with President Xi Jinping's goals for the development of infrastructure," For clarification, we have contacted the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, but we have not yet heard back.