Papua New Guinea gains a team in Australian rugby league in diplomatic push aimed at curbing China

Associated Press

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Papua New Guinea will gain its own team in Australia’s rugby league in a soft diplomacy deal linked to limiting Chinese influence in the South Pacific. The Australian government will spend $380 million over a decade to add a team from its nearest neighbor to the National Rugby League competition from 2028. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Papua New Guinea counterpart James Marape announced the deal in Sydney on Thursday. They also announced that a bilateral security deal struck a year ago had officially come into force. China has pursued its own bilateral security pact on policing with Papua New Guinea and with other South Pacific island nations.