Minister of Foreign Affairs Eli Cohen spoke last Wednesday (22 February 2023) with his counterpart, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Papua New Guinea, Justin Tkachenko.
The two agreed to initiate a move to open an embassy in Jerusalem in 2023. Papua New Guinea has never opened an embassy in Israel, and this will be its first diplomatic mission in Israel.
The country is the world’s third largest island country, with an area of 462,840 km2 (178,700 sq mi). There are 839 known languages of Papua New Guinea, one of the most linguistically diverse countries in the world.Papua New Guinea has about 17 millions inhabitants and is classified as a developing economy by the International Monetary Fund. About 40% of the population are subsistence farmers, living relatively independently of the cash economy.
Papua New Guinea established its sovereignty in 1975. It became an independent Commonwealth realm in 1975 with Elizabeth II as its queen. It also became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations in its own right.
The two ministers also discussed deepening and expanding the economic relations between the two nations, especially in the fields of advanced agriculture. FM Tkachenko assured FM Cohen that his country will continue to support Israel in international arenas.
FM Cohen: “I thank Papua New Guinea for the close relationship, the overwhelming support at international institutions and the decision to establish an embassy in Jerusalem. This is further evidence of the warm and important relationship between the countries. We at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to work to transfer more diplomatic missions to the city of Jerusalem, the eternal capital of the people of Israel.”