Australia-Papua New Guinea Leaders’ Meeting 2026

Joint statement
Wednesday 8 July 2026

The Hon Anthony Albanese MP
Prime Minister of Australia

The Hon James Marape
Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea

1. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Prime Minister James Marape held the sixth Australia-Papua New Guinea Annual Leaders’ Dialogue on 8 July 2026 in Brisbane.
2. The Prime Ministers acknowledged the Turrbal and Jagera peoples as the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which they met and recognised other people or families with connection to the lands of the Brisbane region. They acknowledged and respected their continuing culture and the contribution they make to the life of the city and region.
3. The Prime Ministers announced the entry into force of the Papua New Guinea-Australia Mutual Defence Treaty, the ‘Pukpuk Treaty,’ and marked the formalisation of an historic Alliance. Leaders acknowledged this marked a new era in the bilateral relationship, underpinned by a high degree of strategic trust, mutual respect, commitment to sovereignty and equal partnership. The historic treaty was Papua New Guinea’s first alliance and Australia’s first in over 70 years. The Prime Ministers reflected on the shared history; cultural, faith-based and sporting connections; and the reservoir of goodwill that exists through people-to-people links that continue to strengthen the relationship. In welcoming the entry into force of the Pukpuk Treaty, the Prime Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to keeping the Pacific an Ocean of Peace. They rejected actions that were destabilising and which undermined the peace, security and stability of the Pacific and the region.
4. Prime Minister Albanese commended Prime Minister Marape for his visionary leadership in proposing the Pukpuk Treaty, which would safeguard sovereignty, enhance national resilience and strengthen security for both countries and the wider Pacific region. Prime Minister Marape emphasised that the treaty was a demonstration of PNG’s sovereign choice and maintained integrity of the PNG Defence Force, which would always report to its own Commander. The Prime Ministers underscored how the alliance would elevate all aspects of the bilateral relationship, allowing both nations to bolster their national resilience, protect rules and norms, and enhance collective security.
5. The Prime Ministers acknowledged the Pukpuk Treaty would allow for deeper cooperation, including strengthening capability and integration between the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and PNG Defence Force (PNGDF). The Prime Ministers welcomed swift progress on operationalising and implementing the Treaty, including through the joint taskforce on recruitment of PNG citizens into the ADF. The Prime Ministers discussed the opportunity for young PNG citizens to gain employment and receive specialised training through a career in the ADF.
6. The Prime Ministers reflected on the deep and enduring security partnership between Papua New Guinea and Australia across traditional and non-traditional security interests, underpinned by the 2023 Bilateral Security Agreement. The Prime Ministers highlighted Australia’s support for Papua New Guinea’s internal security priorities including completion of new police barracks in Mount Hagen, Kokopo and Port Moresby, to accommodate a growing Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary presence. The Prime Ministers welcomed the gifting by Australia of two Bell 412 helicopters, to transform police operations in remote and rural parts of Papua New Guinea.
7. Prime Minister Marape welcomed Australia’s support to strengthen Papua New Guinea’s disaster management and response capabilities and thanked Prime Minister Albanese for Australia’s rapid, collaborative assistance in response to Tropical Cyclone Maila.
8. The Prime Ministers highlighted the growing economic partnership, noting that the bilateral trade relationship reached $10 billion in 2025. Prime Minister Marape welcomed progress on the Air Niugini re-fleeting program as a key enabler for trade and tourism. Leaders expressed their shared aspiration to further diversify the bilateral trade relationship through enhanced market integration and to promote Papua New Guinea’s regional trade integration, to foster prosperity and build resilience to future economic shocks.
9. The Prime Ministers reflected on the impacts of global energy disruptions and how they disproportionately impacted Pacific countries. Leaders acknowledged Australia’s longstanding support for Papua New Guinea’s macroeconomic stability and ambitious homegrown economic reform agenda.
10. The Prime Ministers recognised Australia’s investments in Papua New Guinea’s energy, ports, roads, markets and telecommunications infrastructure, which aimed to improve economic and development outcomes. They recognised the importance of sustainable, high-quality infrastructure that prioritised local procurement, created domestic jobs, and fostered sustainable development. Leaders reflected on progress on the Telecommunications Blueprint, agreed at the 31st Ministerial Forum in October 2025, which would provide a practical roadmap to improve connectivity and make services more affordable, accessible and secure.
11. The Prime Ministers welcomed progress on their shared ambition to establish a Papua New Guinean National Rugby League franchise – the PNG Chiefs – with a men’s team starting in the NRL first grade competition and a women’s team joining a premier Australian women’s competition in 2028. They noted the important role these initiatives would play in strengthening pathways from grassroots to the highest levels of the game, fostering inclusion, opportunity and national pride. The Prime Ministers also welcomed recent milestones achieved by the PNG Chiefs, including the appointment of a Head Coach and the recruitment of key players, as important steps toward realising this vision.
12. The Prime Ministers highlighted the contribution of Papua New Guinea’s workers in Australia under the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme, who were supporting critical workforce shortages in Australia, building skills and earning incomes for their families. Prime Minister Marape acknowledged the significant value of remittances sent home by PNG PALM workers, reinforcing labour mobility as an important economic driver. He welcomed the pilot initiative in the early childhood sector and the Australian Government’s commitment to increasing PALM’s skills dividend to support PNG’s future workforce. The Prime Ministers pledged to continue working together to support Papua New Guinea’s PALM scheme growth ambitions, and harness returning workers’ experiences to drive Papua New Guinea’s domestic development.
13. The Prime Ministers welcomed Papua New Guinea reaching its full 2025-26 Pacific Engagement Visa allocation and acknowledged work undertaken to improve access to Australia. They noted that Australia was delivering streamlined arrangements for frequent travellers and an NRL Visa, making it easier for players, officials and fans to enjoy the game that unites our two countries.
14. The Prime Ministers noted Papua New Guinea and Australia’s record of working together as development partners to improve outcomes for current and future generations. They welcomed recent education initiatives supporting Papua New Guinea’s primary, secondary, tertiary, and technical and vocational sectors. They recognised the importance of a healthy nation and Australia’s significant support to Papua New Guinea to strengthen essential health services, including tackling tuberculosis, HIV and polio; training healthcare workers; and supporting high-quality health infrastructure. They reiterated the importance of embedding gender equality and economic empowerment across development activities.
15. The Prime Ministers reaffirmed their strong commitment to the Pacific Islands Forum, as the apex of Pacific-led regional architecture, in positioning the region to respond to global uncertainty and providing Pacific-led solutions to meet the region’s security needs. Prime Minister Albanese commended Prime Minister Marape for the recent signing of the Pacific Policing Initiative Memorandums of Understanding, and for Papua New Guinea’s leadership in championing stronger regional policing cooperation, including in combatting transnational crime. He welcomed Papua New Guinea’s hosting of the Pacific’s first Regional Centre of Excellence for Recruits and Investigations at Bomana and thanked Papua New Guinea for its contributions to Pacific Police Support Group deployments across the region, demonstrating its commitment to strengthening Pacific policing capability and regional security.
16. The Prime Ministers recognised the urgency of addressing and responding to climate change, and the threat it poses to human security in Papua New Guinea and Australia, as well as across the Pacific and around the world. They looked forward to the Pre-COP Leaders’ event in Fiji and Tuvalu in October 2026 as a platform to elevate Pacific voices and solutions, and encouraged advocacy to promote both the event and Pacific-led initiatives such as the Pacific Resilience Facility. Prime Minister Marape emphasised the need for international carbon market frameworks to move past abstract conceptual phases to enable them to deliver financial support for forests and treat rainforest conservation as an international public utility. They welcomed the appointment of Mr Ruel Yamuna as COP31 Pacific Envoy for Access to Climate Finance, who will focus on unlocking climate finance for Pacific countries.
17. The Prime Ministers reaffirmed the importance of regular high-level engagement, including by Ministers through the annual Australia-Papua New Guinea Ministerial Forum, and by officials to implement the Comprehensive Strategic and Economic Partnership, Bilateral Security Agreement, Development Partnership Plan, and Pukpuk Treaty.