The Rugby Gambit

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
You're listening to an Airwave Media Podcast.

**SPEAKER_2** (0:06)
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**SPEAKER_3** (0:37)
Rowhome Productions.

**Jane Perlez** (0:41)
This project is made possible by the generous support of the Carnegie Corporation. Last summer, I flew to the island nation of Papua New Guinea, known as PNG, for a rugby match. It was hot, really hot, 90 degrees in the shade. But even heat couldn't tamp down the enthusiasm of the rugby crowds. All my host, Chaz.

**Chaz** (1:09)
I'm excited for the footy this afternoon. I haven't been to a footy game in a very long time, so.

**Jane Perlez** (1:14)
I want you to.

**Chaz** (1:14)
Thank you, Jane, for coming over and getting me there.

**Jane Perlez** (1:17)
Chaz is a radio personality in PNG. And as you heard, a huge footy fan.

**Chaz** (1:23)
It's what I eat, I live, and I breathe.

**Jane Perlez** (1:25)
Why? How?

**Chaz** (1:27)
I mean, it's just, I just love the game.

**Jane Perlez** (1:30)
And Chaz is far from alone. The island nation off the northwest coast of Australia lives and breathes rugby. So much so, the PNG has struck a $600 million deal with Australia to sponsor a team in the National Rugby League of Australia. The deal was announced by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

**SPEAKER_1** (1:52)
And we are united, of course, by a love of rugby league. And that's why I'm delighted to announce the Australian government is supporting a PNG team to join the National Rugby League competition from 2028

**Chaz** (2:09)
It's exciting that we're going to have a team in the National Rugby League competition of Australia. And that's huge.

**Jane Perlez** (2:18)
It certainly is a huge deal. But maybe not for all the reasons you might think. If you think it seems odd that a Prime Minister could get involved, this deal comes with a catch. In exchange for this new rugby franchise, P&G has agreed that it will not allow China to have any military bases on the island. P&G is in a strategic part of the Pacific, just miles from Australia. China would like to have this piece of the world in its pocket. Australia doesn't want that. And by extension, the US., Australia's closest ally, doesn't want that either. The chance to field a team in the Australian League was a carrot on a string, and Papua New Guinea has taken a bite. Back at the game, the crowd is ecstatic, screaming for their home team, the Hunters. Hear that? That's the sound of soft power. I'm Jane Perlez, and this is Face-Off, a show about U.S.-China relations. Today on the show, Papua New Guinea. How has this island nation in the Pacific become a focal point in the competition between the US and China? First, P&G signed a rugby deal with Australia in December 2024, ensuring that they would not enter into security agreements with China. And now, this past fall, Australia has upped the stakes, signing a full-fledged defense treaty with its island neighbor. I wanted to understand more about what this means for the Pacific region. Our guest today is Oliver Nobetau. He is a lawyer from Papua New Guinea who has worked for the P&G government. He's currently a fellow at the Lowy Institute in Sydney. And he has been following both this rugby deal and the security deal that has just been signed between P&G and Australia.
I asked him to start by laying out the timeline of the two deals.

**Oliver Nobetau** (4:30)
If we were looking back 10 years from now, you'd find that 2024 was defined by that rugby deal and 2025 was defined by this defense treaty. Two years ago, P&G and Australia had signed what was called a bilateral security agreement, its first attempt to make a treaty. But Papua New Guinea was not comfortable to sign a treaty. Now, what's interesting about this is that the negotiations from this treaty had started in February only this year.

**Jane Perlez** (4:59)
So it was very fast, complete, very fast. Faster than the, maybe the football.

**Oliver Nobetau** (5:05)
Yeah, yeah, definitely. Like the NRL deal has been 10 years in the making, the Defense Corporation agreement that P&G signed with the USA was negotiated over our full years. And this is something that's been concluded in seven months.

**Jane Perlez** (5:18)
Well, maybe this, if I may say, maybe this speaks to the quote unquote China threat, that people are really concerned about the China threat. Because I should have mentioned that the football agreement is signed on the premise that P&G does not accept any military help from China. Is that correct?