The following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and Papua New Guinea on the occasion of the first United States - Papua New Guinea Strategic Partnership Dialogue in Washington, D.C.
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United States Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Independent State of Papua New Guinea Deputy Prime Minister John Rosso met in Washington, D.C., for the first ever U.S.-Papua New Guinea Strategic Partnership Dialogue (SPD) on October 10, 2024. The establishment of this annual dialogue reflects the maturing of the bilateral relationship between the United States and Papua New Guinea. The relationship between our countries is built on a foundation of shared values and mutual respect. This inaugural dialogue and its future iterations will strengthen the partnership between the United States and Papua New Guinea by providing a venue for routinized communication and consultation on areas of mutual interest and collaboration as we identify methods to leverage our shared values in pursuit of a more secure and prosperous future. Through this dialogue, we commit to deepening our respect for each other, both through an appreciation of all that we share and through an acknowledgement of the richness of our differences.
The teams that assembled in Washington this month built upon and expanded the commitments made during the U.S. interagency visit to Papua New Guinea in July and October 2024, as well as the Papua New Guinea delegation visit to Washington in March 2024. Those commitments are undergirded by the rigorous programs of cooperation developed through the U.S. Strategy to Prevent Conflict and Promote Stability (SPCPS) launched in April 2022 and our Defense Cooperation Agreement signed in Port Moresby in May 2023 and ratified in August 2023. The representatives discussed the great potential of the agreement to modernize our security relationship in service of a free and open Indo-Pacific, as well as how both sides might accelerate their efforts to make the most use of the SPCPS in service of an equitable and stable future for our shared goals in the Pacific and around the globe.
The United States and Papua New Guinea pledged to work cooperatively in raising global ambition to accelerate greenhouse gas emission reductions on a trajectory consistent with limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and simultaneously advancing adaptation and resilience to the impacts of the climate crisis, in particular regarding its dramatic and concerning effects in the Pacific. Both sides noted the imperative that at least all major economies submit 2035 nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement that are economy-wide, cover all greenhouse gases, and are 1.5C-aligned. Given the importance of forests in combatting climate change and biodiversity loss, halting deforestation is a priority for both the United States and Papua New Guinea. Climate vulnerability is a shared concern, and building resilience to climate impacts will also have a positive effect on stability and security. Both of our countries stand ready to work together on humanitarian assistance and disaster risk reduction to address the expanding threat and growing impact of climate and weather-related disasters.
Together our countries committed to continue expanding economic cooperation through trade and investment, modernizing our bilateral aviation relationship through an Open Skies agreement, multilateral engagement, and increased access to finance, especially for women entrepreneurs. Also, we resolved to continue our technical cooperation to support sound governance of Papua New Guinea's mineral resource sector. As one of the key objectives of the SPCPS, we will explore how best to expand our markets in support of sustainable and inclusive economic growth in Papua New Guinea and in the greater Indo-Pacific region. In addition, we reaffirmed our collective efforts to help Papua New Guinea achieve its commitment to enhancing energy services for Papua New Guineans by building on the ongoing implementation of the Papua New Guinea Electrification Partnership that improved access to power for more than 255,000 households to date.
The United States and Papua New Guinea remain dedicated to expanding existing people-to-people ties and exploring new opportunities to share our culture and heritage. This includes bringing together professionals, such as conservators, curators, and registrars from Papua New Guinea and other nations in the Pacific and Southeast Asia, establishing the first ever Sister City partnerships for Papua New Guinea between Lae and Charleston, South Carolina; Madang and Poplar, Wisconsin; and Port Moresby and Long Beach, California, and expanding opportunities for Papua New Guinea students at U.S. universities. These combined efforts highlight our shared interests and aspirations to deepen our understanding of one another.
Deputy Secretary of State Campbell and Deputy Prime Minister Rosso commit to hold the next Strategic Partnership Dialogue in Port Moresby in conjunction with Papua New Guinea's 50th anniversary of independence in 2025 and to continue holding this consultation on a yearly basis. They expressed their enthusiasm for continuing to build on the solid foundation of friendship and collaboration that defines the United States-Papua New Guinea relationship.
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