PM Modi Gets Highest Honour of Papua New Guinea: Why the Island Country Matters to India | Explained

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Monday conferred with the highest honours of Papua New Guinea and Fiji, in a rare recognition for a non-resident in the two Pacific island nations.

Modi arrived in Papua New Guinea on Sunday on his maiden visit to the country to host a key summit between India and 14 Pacific island countries to boost bilateral ties.

“Unprecedented honour for India as Papua New Guinea confers their highest award to PM Modi,” the Prime Minister’s Office said. It was presented to him by Papua New Guinea Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae.

The Honour

Papua New Guinea conferred the Companion of the Order of Logohu to Prime Minister Modi for championing the cause of unity of Pacific Island countries and spearheading the cause of Global South. Very few non-residents of PNG have received this award, including former US President Bill Clinton, it said.

“An honour emblematic of the depth of India-Papua New Guinea relationship,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) tweeted.

This comes immediately after Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka also conferred the country’s highest award to Modi. “Big Honour for India. Prime Minister Modi has been conferred the highest honour of Fiji by the PM of Fiji: Companion of the Order of Fiji in recognition of his global leadership. Only a handful of Non-Fijians have received this honour to date,” the Prime Minister’s Office said.

Prime Minister Modi dedicated the honour to the people of India and to the generations of the Fiji-Indian community, who have played a key role in the special and enduring bond between the two countries, the MEA said on Twitter.

About Papa New Guinea

Papua New Guinea is an island country located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It encompasses the eastern portion of New Guinea, which is the world’s second-largest island (the western part belongs to the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua). Additionally, it includes the Bismarck Archipelago, consisting of islands such as New Britain, New Ireland, the Admiralty Islands, and others. Bougainville and Buka, which are part of the Solomon Islands chain, as well as several small offshore islands and atolls, are also part of Papua New Guinea. The national capital, Port Moresby, is situated in the southeastern region of New Guinea, near the Coral Sea, according to a report by Britannica.

The islands that make up Papua New Guinea have been inhabited for approximately 40,000 years by a diverse mix of people commonly referred to as Melanesians. Since gaining independence in 1975, one of the country’s major challenges has been effectively governing the many hundreds of distinct and once-isolated local societies as a unified and viable nation.

India’s Ties With the Country

India established diplomatic relations with Papua New Guinea in 1975 when the island gained independence from Australia. In 1996, India opened its mission in Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, while Papua New Guinea established its mission in Delhi in 2006.

The Ministry of External Affairs reports that there are approximately 3,000 Indians residing in Papua New Guinea. Among them, around 2,000 are employed in various projects within the LNG (liquefied natural gas) sector. The Indian community in Papua New Guinea comprises individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, including chartered accountants, university professors, school teachers, doctors, IT professionals, finance experts, and more. Their contributions enrich the cultural and professional landscape of both countries, according to a report by Firstpost.

Why the Visit is Important

In Papua New Guinea, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the third summit of the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC), a significant gathering that brings together India and 14 Pacific Island countries. First initiated in 2014 in Fiji, FIPIC was designed to foster India’s presence in the Pacific Island region. The second summit took place in India’s vibrant city of Jaipur in 2015.

At this year’s summit, Prime Minister Modi expressed India’s commitment to multilateralism and emphasized the country’s support for a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region. He made a noteworthy statement highlighting that the Pacific island nations are not simply small island states, but rather, “large ocean countries.” This gathering holds immense importance as India seeks to counter China’s increasing influence in the Pacific, argues a report by Firstpost. As retired navy chief Arun Prakash pointed out, these Pacific Island nations offer strategic opportunities for establishing naval bases, friendly ports, and airstrips, in addition to their vast ocean resources. Western countries, including India, are concerned about China taking advantage of any voids in the region and filling them up.

China has been expanding its presence in the Pacific through initiatives like the Belt and Road project. Notably, in 2022, Beijing signed a security deal with the Solomon Islands, and more recently, it secured a contract to redevelop the port in the capital city of Honiara.

Furthermore, Papua New Guinea’s inclination towards China is raising serious concerns among the Quad countries, namely Australia, India, the United States, and Japan. In November 2022, Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister James Marape held a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Bangkok, where Beijing referred to both countries as “good friends, good partners, and good brothers.” Marape has also received an invitation from China’s special envoy to the Pacific, Qian Bo, to visit Beijing for a state visit, the report says.

It is hoped that Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Papua New Guinea will help redirect the country’s attention and establish New Delhi as an emerging global power in the region.

With inputs from PTI