By Michael Koziol
Copyright theage
“It’s a Godfather-esque approach,” he says. “It’s not necessarily a quid pro quo. It’s ‘We’re doing you this favour, someday I may have a favour to ask of you’. That is their model. The bill always comes due. It’s not like that day never comes.”
The US drawdown and Beijing’s posturing have made it all the more necessary for Australia to reassert itself as a reliable friend of the Pacific, which is what Foreign Minister Penny Wong did when she addressed the Pacific Islands Forum in May.
She acknowledged the future was becoming more uncertain for the Pacific, citing “cuts to global aid and rules under strain”, alongside climate change.
“Australia is a partner the Pacific can count on,” Wong said. “Recognising the impact of global aid cuts, we have reprioritised our development assistance to dedicate 75 cents of every Australian development dollar to support our region.” That included $81 million to address HIV/AIDS, dengue fever and polio in the region.
By June, more than four months after the initial stop-work order went out, FHI in PNG had received confirmation from Washington that some – but not all – of its programs were deemed life-saving, and could resume.
Poruan Temu, the regional director, said the non-profit was ordered to focus on care and treatment for patients living with HIV. Despite the escalating HIV crisis in PNG, prevention was not considered a core activity. He says FHI is now focusing its prevention program on pregnant and breastfeeding women.
Happily, Temu says, the number of people accessing care has bounced back towards pre-stop-work-order levels. “We’re very proud of the efforts that have been made to make back the gains that were lost.”
This week, the US State Department held its own round table in Port Moresby, led by Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, aimed at “reinvigorating the US-Pacific Islands partnership”.
It confirmed a number of digital connectivity commitments in the region, including the East Micronesia Cable, jointly funded with Australia and Japan, and an additional $US4.5 million ($6.8 million) for terrestrial infrastructure. It also flagged another $US5 million for airports, as well as other “trusted American digital technology” for Fiji.
Long-term investments in HIV epidemic control to PNG totalled $US26.95 million between 2018 and 2025, the department said, and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief would continue to provide life-saving services for those living with HIV or at high risk of infection.
“Starting under the first Trump administration, the US has worked to reprioritise the Pacific Islands region in US foreign policy and advance US strategic objectives by fostering economic growth, expanding infrastructure and connectivity, and bolstering security co-operation,” it said.
“Under this second Trump administration, the US has renewed its commitment to a free and open Pacific Islands region.”
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