BY Dalcy Lulua
PRIME Minister James Marape announced tonight (Sunday 21, May 2023) that the signing of the Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) is confirmed for tomorrow (Monday 22, May 2023) afternoon.
PM Marape stated that Cabinet has approved the Defense Cooperation Agreement with the USA, and tomorrow afternoon, as part of our bilateral engagement with the USA, “we will sign the agreement.”
The Prime Minister emphasized that the Defense Agreement is not a new development, as Papua New Guinea (PNG) already has defense agreements with other nations.
“The Defense Cooperation Agreement provides us with unprecedented access to US defense capabilities. I want to assure our citizens that we have similar Defense Cooperation Agreements in place with Australia and Indonesia,” the PM explained.
PM Marape assured the citizens that there is no need to fear or doubt this agreement, as it does not require any constitutional amendments or breach any requirements. The agreement falls within the provisions of the Visiting Forces Act 1975.
This agreement is similar to the existing Status of Forces Agreement that PNG has with the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and the USA. However, the difference is that the Status of Forces Agreement has multiple partners, whereas the DCA establishes a one-on-one agreement with the USA.
“This agreement does not prevent us from engaging with Australia, Indonesia, Philippines, China, or any other countries. It is specifically designed for military collaboration between the US and PNG going forward,” he said
“I do not consider geopolitics as an issue. The primary objective for my country is to strengthen and secure our own sovereign borders.”
