Pukpuk Treaty: The Papua New Guinea and Australian Military Alliance Treaty and how the Bilateral military Treaty impacts on Samoan National Security.


The post Colonialism bilateral military alliance Treaty between Papua New Guinea and Australia secures a PERMANENT interoperability between the Military Forces of Papua New Guinea and the Australian Defense Force joined at the hip. 

Meanwhile, insofar as Papua New Guinea true Independence from their former Colonial Masters the joining of the Military Forces under the Pukpuk Treaty ensures the genuine military interoperability in military resources and personnel will include 10,000 Papua New Guinea Soldiers are able to join the Australian Armed Forces from here on in. 

It appears the Pukpuk Treaty has been aimed directly at interdicting any likelihood of a Chinese military speculation in the Western Pacific Region into perpetuity.

Palestine State

How does the Pukpuk Treaty impact on Papua New Guinea Foreign Policy and International Relations? The recent Palestinian State recognition is a point of conjecture in which the international relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea when at the recent United Nations General Assembly Vote on the recognition of the Palestinian State, Papua New Guinea along with Tonga, voted against the recognition of a Palestinian State. 

In the event that the Australian Defense Force are forced into deploying military personnel and assets to enforce the recognition of a Palestinian State within Israel, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, the ADF may be forced to deploy ADF personnel into the region. Notwithstanding, this eventuality, the Papuan New Guinean military personnel and assets may be obligated, under the Pukpuk Treaty, to assist the ADF in their mission objectives in a likely Gaza Strip intervention operation? 

The divergent international relations political decision-making process may place the Political leaders of Papua New Guinea and Canberra at odds in very important international relations matter of State. 

More to the point, the Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Island Nations collectively did NOT ENDORSE the RECOGNITION of a PALESTINE STATE. This is important, since even New Zealand later recanted their support of a Palestinian State after the fact that New Zealand, like Australia, had voted in favour of recognising a Palestinian State. 

More specifically, the recognition of Palestinian State has been initially premised under coercive means, mainly as a result of a Bellicose mea culpa through an act of Terrorism during the Hamas Al Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7th, 2023. The subsequent Hamas-Israeli War has since been ongoing since October 7th, 2023 resulting in the kidnapping of Israeli Hostages and the refusal to surrender by an obstinate Hamas enemy. The refusal to release Israeli Hostages and to surrender has subsequently resulted in the United Nations deciding to recognise a Palestine State is in itself rewarding Terrorism with Statehood. Such a raison d'etre  for Palestinian Statehood is unacceptable to the Pacific Island Nations. The overwhelming Christian community of the Pacific Island Nations is also an overwhelmingly influencing fact in their decision to refuse to collectively recognise a Palestinian State. More saliently revealed by both Papua New Guinea and Tonga. Samoa was undergoing an election during the UNGA Vote.

China Blue Water Expansion and the expansion of the Belt and Road Initiative through the Pacific, Central and South America.

During the recent Chinese National Day celebration on October 1st 2025, the Chinese Government announced the cancellation of the BHP Iron Ore imports from Australia and announced the increase of Iron Ore imports from the Simondau mining operations in Guinea, Africa of some 60 million tonnes of Iron Ore for 2025. From 2026, the importation of Guinea Iron Ore is expected to increase to 150 million tons. 

Furthermore, the Chinese Type 003 Fujian would be commissioned into operational service in October 2025, ushering a new era of Chinese Blue Water reach beyond the third island chain of containment by the United States Allies upon the Chinese People Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Blue water Fleet ambitions. 

At the same time, the Chinese Navy announced the construction of the Type 004 and perhaps in the not too distant future, the Type 005, Nuclear Powered Aircraft Carriers, are to be launched, for an expected commissioning into service by 2030. 

With an increasing and urgent expansion of the Chinese military within recent years the Chinese have become less gun shy particularly within the Nine Dash Line within the South China Sea. Numerous alleged International Maritime Law breaches have been squarely alleged against China, especially, by the Philippines Government. Numerous skirmishes resulting in maritime clashes within the Scarborough Shoals, has been noted. 

For the Australian FONOPS, Freedom of Navigation Operations within the South China Sea, whether at sea or air, the Poseidon has encountered their fair share of Chinese interdiction attempts, as well as, the Australian Naval Ships having unwelcomed encounters under the Chinese Anti Access Area Denial (A2AD) protocols. This undoubtedly would prompt the Australian Government to seek urgent partners within the region. Most suitably the Papua New Guinea, geostrategically and proximately regionally wise, is an important buffer for the Australians against both their traditional adversarial enemies of Indonesia and China.

In terms of realpoliticks and the geopolitical realities of an ever growing regional Superpower, the Chinese Blue Water ambition goes beyond regional hegemony, it is focused further to secure BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) geo-economic and geo-strategic security throughout the Global South. With a Blue Water Fleet, the Chinese are able to secure shipping lanes from across the Pacific Ocean reaching the Nicaragua second Pacific Caribbean Sea crossing


Samoan National Security since Pukpuk Treaty.

Samoa has no military branch of Government. In Geo-Political terms this excludes the Samoan Nation from any military alliances or Treaties with any potential regional or bilateral partners which augurs well for the Sino-Samoan relations. Samoa has maintained a close economic, geo-political harmonious relationship with China due to the seemingly non-military status of the Samoan Nation in global affairs. Suffice it to say, the Samoan Police participate in United Nations Policing missions throughout Africa or the Asia-Pacific region. 

The unprecedented bilateral alliance between PNG and Australia is the first military alliance Treaty in the Pacific region and separates the PNG from other Pacific Forum members with this joining at the hip military alliance with the Australian Defense Force. 

In the event that the likely hostilities would erupt between China and or Indonesia, with AUKUS or QUAD member Nations, PNG would, inadvertently, participate, under the Pukpuk Treaty, in a regional conflict. The most likely mea culpa would be over the Taiwan sovereignty invasion from the Chinese military in the future or if an Indonesian/West Papuan conflict were to spill over the border onto Papua New Guinea?

The Chinese Pacific expansion has been notably Chinese form of Mercantilism albeit within a Laissez Fair setting in the sparsely populated and resourced Pacific Island Community. The numerous Chinese commercial enterprises throughout the Pacific Island Nations cannot be ignored. Augmenting this perpetual Chinese commercial presence is the evidence of the Chinese Belt and Road Initiatives throughout the Pacific Island Nations. Sporting Complexes, Hospitals, Airports and Government Buildings are evidenced everywhere in almost the entire Pacific Island Nations. 

For the Chinese Military however the Belt and Road Initiative which augments the BRICS and SCO economic bloc Global South Hegemony throughout the Caribbean, Central and South American region has a vested military and strategic important value for the Chinese moving well into the next century. A Chinese Blue Water Fleet needs to secure and protect these vital shipping lanes. 

Papua New Guinea is NOT considered important to the Chinese BRICS and SCO strategic global reach and expansion. Australia is valued only for their Coal and Iron Ore nothing else. Presently, 60% of China's Iron Ore imports is sourced from Australia. However, China is increasingly looking elsewhere for their Iron Ore, namely Mongolia and now Africa. The alternative market is earmarked from BRICS and SCO member Nations away from Australia, a geostrategic and political ideological foe. 

Samoa would be part of the Chinese Blue Water strategic nodes of importance due to its ideal location in the middle of the Pacific Ocean whereby urgent replenishment supplies for shipping and the Chinese military allies or a friendly port is highly sought. 

Asau Port, Savaii Island, was once entertained as a likely port for a Chinese Naval replenishment Port for the future Chinese Blue Water Fleet, namely the Type 004 or Type 005 Carrier Strike Group escorting Chinese Shipping to a future Nicaraguan Cross Channel to the Caribbean Sea and onto BRICS member Nations either in Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Cuba etc. 

Conclusion.

The Pukpuk Treaty may be considered as a Political Gesture rather than a real strategic interdiction to Chinese Blue Water sphere of influence within the Pacific Region. 

The Chinese vested interest in the Pacific region is purely geo-economic in scope. The Chinese aim to consolidate the BRICS trading lanes via the shortest route possible, straight through the Pacific Ocean to Central and South American coastlines and onto the Caribbean Sea.

Samoa is a crucial naval node for this strategic objective and not Papua New Guinea nor any Western Pacific MELSOC member Nation.

Tim Tufuga. 



Sources: 

1. Ted Vadio, Youtube.com, https://youtu.be/EmjH7HPKznQ?si=n80W07xwW6IGpbMC

2. Sky News Australia, Youtube.com, https://youtu.be/PIOFokyfVd0?si=k5HSQZZejWhaYY1Y



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