PNG ousts Taiwan officials, seeks to 'reassure' China after Australian treaty

Papua New Guinea will close Taiwan's trade mission in its capital Port Moresby, freezing out its fifth largest trading partner in a major strategic move designed to reaffirm ties with China.

In a statement on Thursday, Papua New Guinea's Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko said Taiwan's presence was "no longer recognised or required" in the country.

He said it marked a "vital" step towards deepening trust with Beijing and reiterated his country's commitment to the One China policy.

Taiwanese officials in Port Moresby were caught off guard by the major decision, which they first learnt about when contacted by the ABC on Thursday.

Minister Tkatchenko said the Papua New Guinea Department of Foreign Affairs communicated with the Taipei office prior to the announcement but did not provide further comment.

In a statement, Taiwan's foreign ministry said it opposed the "unilateral decision" and intended to continue its presence in Papua New Guinea.

"Our representative office in Papua New Guinea will continue to operate normally and, in accordance with relevant regulations, safeguard our nation's rights and interests and provide necessary services to our nationals," it said.

Taiwan has indicated it is seeking talks with the Papua New Guinea government and support from "like-minded" countries.

Meanwhile, China has praised the move, labelling it an "example that the One China principle has the overwhelming support of the international community".

"It is a right decision ... which will further consolidate political foundation for the development of China-PNG bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields," a Chinese embassy official in Port Moresby said.

In 2023 the Papua New Guinea government decided to close its trade office in Taiwan and replace it with a downgraded presence called the PNG Taipei Economic Office.

It said at the time the office "was no longer needed" and the decision was not made as a concession to China.

The Pacific has long been an area for diplomatic competition between China and Taiwan, which Beijing views as its own territory with no right to the trappings of a state.

The democratically-ruled island rejects China's sovereignty claims.

Mihai Sora, research director at the Lowy Institute, said the move against Taipei was designed to help Papua New Guinea secure diplomatic ties with Beijing, whilst also deepening security cooperation with Australia.

A landmark defence alliance with Australia — known as the Pukpuk Treaty — came into force this month, obliging the two countries to defend each other in the event of a military attack.

"[Papua New Guinea] has chosen to provide reassurance to Beijing at a time when you can imagine senior officials and political figures in Beijing might be concerned that PNG is pulling very closely to Australia," Mr Sora said.

"PNG ... wants to signal to Beijing that it values its trade and economic relationship with Beijing, and it's not beholden to Australian interests."

Taiwan is Papua New Guinea's fifth largest trading partner accounting for exports worth over $2 billion per year, mostly comprising of LNG.

Mr Sora said while exports would likely continue despite the closure of the Taiwan trade office, it could impact the growth in economic ties.

He said the move assisted Beijing's ambition of whittling down Taipei's official presence in the region.

"Beijing's ultimate objective is to seize Taiwan, whether through military means or preferably without any military action," Mr Sora said.

"And one important step towards that is to eliminate any international stakeholders that would otherwise stand up for Taiwan or support its ambitions to be recognised as a sovereign country.

"So every office, every diplomatic presence, every informal presence matters to Taiwan and it matters to Beijing for that same reason."

Papua New Guinea very briefly had diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1999.

Taiwan has formal diplomatic ties with only three Pacific Islands nations — Palau, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands — but had maintained a de facto embassy in Papua New Guinea. It also has a similar office in Fiji.

Only 12 countries maintain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan.