ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER OF AUSTRALIA: Good morning. Look it is a great honour to be with my very good friend Prime Minister Marape here today and return the hospitality that I received when I visited Port Moresby and Wewak earlier this year and had the great honour of being the first person from outside Papua New Guinea to address the Parliament in Port Moresby. Australia and Papua New Guinea share a very special relationship. It is 50 years since the decision was made in December 1973 by the Whitlam Labor Government to grant independence to Papua New Guinea. And since then, that relationship with that shared history has meant that we have developed still so close, but as equals, as equals and as partners. And today we take that partnership to a new level. As close neighbours and regional leaders, our security and prosperity are bound together. We help each other in times of need and we respond together to the needs of the Pacific family. Since coming to government, we've boosted our support for Papua New Guinea's economic ambitions in infrastructure, health, education and labour mobility. And we've made progress on improving visa processing and access. It's down from more than 50 days down to under 14 now just this year. Most recently, we've worked together to help the Solomon Islands deliver security for its successful Pacific Games that were held in Honiara. Today, we have fulfilled our commitment to elevate our partnership by signing a legally binding bilateral security agreement. This is a comprehensive and a historic agreement. It will make it easier for Australia to help PNG address its internal security needs and for Australia and Papua New Guinea to support each other's security and the region's stability. Policing and domestic security are priorities for my friend, Prime Minister Marape. They are essential for the economic development of PNG and for the welfare of the people of that great nation, which the Prime Minister always reminds me is a nation of 800 languages. That's what you call diversity. And that, of course, means that an absolute priority is how you bring social cohesion to such a diverse population. We have listened to the Prime Minister's priorities and I can announce today a new package of support for policing infrastructure and training for the Royal PNG Constabulary, as well as new support for the judiciary, correctional services and combating gender based violence. We're also announcing today that Australia will support PNG to establish a police recruit and investigations training centre to help Papua New Guinea build a larger, more capable police force and provide training to other Pacific police forces. This security agreement is a natural progression in our security partnership. It builds on our comprehensive strategic and economic partnership. It reinforces our mutual respect for each other's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. And of course, if you stand on Saibai Island in the Torres Strait you can literally see Papua New Guinea and if you're a good swimmer you might be able to swim there as well. I look forward very much to hosting Prime Minister Marape on February 8 as a Guest of Government and him addressing a joint sitting in parliament, which will be the first address by a leader to our parliament since President Widodo at the beginning of 2020. So, this will be the first in four years. Will return the honour that I received in January of being the first foreign leader to address that parliament and have written to the Speaker today and with the support as well of the Leader of the Opposition, we look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Marape for that joint sitting of parliament. Papua New Guinea can always count on Australia. We share a future and together we're building a partnership that will deliver peace, prosperity and opportunity for our people and for our region. Prime Minister Marape.
JAMES MARAPE, PRIME MINISTER OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Thank you. Thank you very much, my good friend, brother, the Prime Minister of Australia, the honourable Albanese. Today is a good moment in which both leaders representing our two people, our two governments, one more time entrenching our shared history, our deep bond and our two countries closeness, one more time deeper in the security agreement that we've just signed. I want to say thank you very much for the warm hospitality, Prime Minister Albanese, and your team has brought to me and my delegation. But this is not just one moment in which Australia has been hospitable to Papua New Guinea. We became a sovereign nation from the hands of Australia when the Australian flag was lowered for the first time in the afternoon of September 15, 1975 and when PNG's flag was hosted for the first time in September 16, 1975. Australia 50 years ago this date we would be seven days into our own self government. It was December 1, 1973 that the Labour Whitlam Government granted the Somare Pangu Government the self-government authority and from there our march to sovereignty took place and two years later in September 16, 1975, we became independent. The construct of what is modern day Papua New Guinea has a lot of input by Australia right from day one. In fact, even before day one, the structure of our judiciary, the structure of our public service, the structure of our education system, the sovereign borders we have today was a construct of what became Papua New Guinea, under Australian words, Australian sovereignty. And today, 48 years on, we have had our own travel together as two nations, brother and sister nations. I am happy that my friend Prime Minister Albanese, under his words and my words, we have now signed what is a historic bilateral security agreement that not only look into one spectrum of security but encompasses quite a broad spectrum of security that covers not just police but looks into judiciary, has a working relationship with our defence, also look into the economic security of our people. as well as every other aspects that deals with our national prosperity and our national well being. I want to thank all Australian taxpayers and it is not just in the personal interest of Prime Minister Albanese to forge a deeper working relationship with Australia and PNG. You've always given support to us. What happens up north of your borders has a deep shared effect, benefit, consequences on our region. We have emerged as joint leaders in our part of planet Earth. In the world of many relationships out there, we choose to ensure we go deepen and strengthen our bond with Australia because it is home for us. I was telling your Prime Minister, Australian Prime Minister, earlier in our meeting, we have many plate tectonics that anchor PNG together, but the biggest is the Australian plate below that holds our part of PNG and the Australian continent together. That just simply depicts that we are joined at the hips forever and going forward, it is in our leadership interest that we construct a feature today and the signing of the strategic security agreement between Australia and Papua New Guinea is a step in constructing what would be our shared future as it has been our shared past. And I want to appreciate Prime Minister Albanese's leadership. When we invited you to address our parliament on the 12th of January this year, you became the first foreign leader to address our national parliament. That was not coincidental. It was meant to be. It would have been an Australian Prime Minister to address our parliament. It happened to be you, my friend, and I'm just happy that you are giving me an opportunity to address your parliament on the 8th of February in 2024. To emerging Australians and emerging Papua New Guineans, we can never compromise our two nations closeness, our two nations cultures, our two nations history, and more importantly, as we leaders gel together, it is an indication to citizens of Australia and Papua New Guinea, business of Australia and Papua New Guinea, Public Service of Australia and Papua New Guinea that it is in our combined interest to work together going forward into the future. And I just look forward to that moment to address the parliament. But thank you very much for the opportunity for us to sign the security agreement. It will then be worked upon to consolidate our two national interests, our two countries people and of course, government to government working relationships going forward.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Ashleigh Raper.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister Marape, Papua New Guinea has wanted to be a friend to all, enemy to none. But you've now signed a defence agreement with the United States, this security agreement with Australia. So, can we take this as a sign that you're in fact picking a side in the strategic competition between the United States and China?
JAMES MARAPE, PRIME MINISTER: It's never picking a side. Every relationship has its own peculiar views. Our common foreign policy, I beg your pardon, our major foreign policy as friends to all, enemies to none, remains. And it's never picking a side. We have specific aspects of relations with every nation we choose to, with Australia, with USA. Those are the relationships we picked. And it's never at the expense of our relationships elsewhere.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Ben.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister Marape on security, Bougainville is the region's biggest potential security flashpoint. Four years ago, 97.7 per cent of Bougainville voted for independence from PNG. Mr Marape, do you commit a government you lead to ratifying that referendum result? And to Mr Albanese, Australia's party to the Bougainville Peace Agreement, should PNG respect the overwhelming free vote of Bougainvilleans and allow Bougainville its independence?
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: I'll say very clearly, I'll answer first before Mr Marape, I respect PNG's sovereignty and those issues are a matter for Papua New Guinea.
JAMES MARAPE, PRIME MINISTER: All right. Australia was part of the peace process, New Zealand was part of the peace process in 2001 when we reached the Bougainville Peace Agreement, and the process is on foot. The final leg of the peace process means national parliament will ratify, in the words of the peace agreement, ratify the results. And so there are two sides, the national government and the autonomous Bougainville government, have a handle on the peace agreement process. It is a peace agreement process meaning for a peaceful solution to the Bougainville issue. The political question, the political process, is another part of the conversation. We are on time, on schedule to honour the 2001 peace process, the ratification process will take precedence.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Thanks, Stephen.
JOURNALIST: Thanks, Prime Minister. Prime Minister Marape, can I just clarify, is it your expectation that this agreement that's been signed today will be ratified or will need to be ratified by the parliament, or will it be binding on signature? And can I also ask, just in the details of the security pact, is there any clause whatsoever that implies any sort of exclusive rights for Australia here? Does it exclude Papua New Guinea signing similar agreements with any other country, or is that not the case? And Mr. Albanese, on that subject, can I ask, did Australia, as was reported earlier this year, push for any exclusionary language in this treaty during the negotiation process?
JAMES MARAPE, PRIME MINISTER: If you don't mind, my friend, there is no exclusivity in between this one. This one gives respect to PNG and Australia's own security need and our own peculiar aspects of our security. Lest we forget, we source more investments from Australian investments in PNG. Right now, the biggest hold of investors are Australian investors in our country. Security in all aspects is important for PNG as much as it's for Australia. There's no exclusivity. Australia has given us respect to our relationship elsewhere. This is dovetailed in a manner in which it protects our own national interests to have economic and secure relationship elsewhere. But more importantly, it is signed in a manner in which Australia wants to get involved in PNG. PNG invited them to come in. It was not Australia forcing its way in. PNG invited Australia and we had two teams sitting on the table. The construct is mutually satisfying, respects Australian sovereignty as much as Australia respects PNG sovereignty in what we've signed. So, I'm satisfied, he's satisfied. Australian people should be satisfied, PNG people should be satisfied. There is no need for us to go to my own parliament. The constitutional process was deployed. All elements of legal requirements have been satisfactory dispensed with. My signature and my colleague signature is as good as word gone out. We have a clauses inside that allows for us to have a review in this one and as every agreement has enough room for improvement, but there's enough basis for us to get to work to ensure that it pays dividend to the benefit of Papua New Guinea, as much as our responsibility to ensure securities improved up there in PNG.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Thanks, Prime Minister. This is a legally binding agreement. The approach, as Prime Minister Marape has said, came from Papua New Guinea and we worked it through in a way that we both got exactly what we wanted from this process. This will assist not just external security for both PNG and Australia, but will assist as well with the internal security arrangements within Papua New Guinea with the provisions that are there on issues such as assistance with police training and with those facilities and infrastructure. It's a very comprehensive agreement. It comes into effect now and that is very important and I believe we'll have overwhelming support. Prime Minister Marape generously spoke about the support that Australia has given Papua New Guinea historically when it has come to defence relationships, but I'll make this concluding point. All Australians should give thanks to the people of Papua New Guinea for the assistance that was given to our Australian diggers during World War II. PNG citizens gave their lives protecting Australian defence personnel and of course, that was at a time where the territorial integrity of PNG was a part of, if you like, Australia in terms of the relations. But the people of Papua New Guinea, and when I attended Wewak in the north there and went to the base that is there as well, you see throughout Papua New Guinea, not the least of which the history of the Kokoda Trail, where there's a memorial pretty close to my electorate in the inner west of Sydney, in the electorate next door in Reid. This is a relationship that was forged, literally, with giving lives of both Australians and Papua New Guineans for each other, for our interests going forward. And that's why we have no closer friend than Papua New Guinea. And what today does is cement that relationship. Thanks very much.