Ministers off to PNG for talks

Trade, the closure of Manus Island detention centre and policing will be on the agenda when five Australian ministers head to PNG for official talks.

Five Australian ministers are off to Papua New Guinea to discuss the closure of the Manus Island immigration detention centre and the country's economic future.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Immigration Minister Peter Dutton, Veterans Affairs Minister Dan Tehan, Assistant Trade Minister Keith Pitt and Pacific Minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells will be in PNG from Tuesday until Thursday.

Ms Bishop is set to have bilateral talks with her PNG counterpart Rimbink Pato in the resort town of Madang.

The detention centre has been slated for closure but no time frame has been set.

Australia is hoping the US will resettle refugees held on both Manus Island and Nauru.

Trade, development, border security and policing is also on the agenda for the ministerial talks.

PNG is set to host the APEC leaders summit in 2018, and Australia is expected to contribute a large portion of the costs.

Australia recently announced $48 million in funding to extend the presence of 73 federal police officers in PNG until after the November summit.

Officers are helping PNG police to plan security arrangements.

The PNG economy has faced severe challenges as a result of the downturn in global commodity prices.

The government's budget is under heavy strain and it has been forced to cut spending and raise taxes.

Ms Bishop will also travel to Lae to open Australia's new consulate-general.

She will meet with senior business people and young PNG women forging careers in science, technology and engineering.


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Source: AAP


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