The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
May 22, 2023

U.S. Signs Security Pact with Papua New Guinea Amid Rising Tensions with China
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The U.S. and Papua New Guinea have signed a security pact, giving
American forces access to the country's airfields and ports as the U.S.
seeks to counter Chinese influence and extend its own reach in the
Pacific. President Biden was originally slated to attend the signing
today in Papua New Guinea but flew back to Washington after the G7
summit in Japan to resume debt limit negotiations. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken filled in instead, meeting with Prime Minister James
Marape.


.