If what JW says about the PNG media is true, it doesn’t need any help from Australia, whose politicians allow themselves to be bullied by the media. And, it would seem that China's Communist government would have much more luck influencing our Leftist media than it would the robust PNG lot.

Anyway, it is the PNG government's business to look after its own media, not Australia's. Australia's government cannot even deal with the ABC, which it continues paying to undermine democracy.

I dunno where the crowd that write these articles live man!,

China is moving in. Get used to the idea.

There is only one scenario worse, that’s America moving in.

If you have a death wish, and want your Country to resemble Ukraine, than invite in the Americans.

Let’s see what China has to offer. We are already well in on the road to that destination now.

Dan

How is it Australia's challenge? This is surely the role of the PNG parliament! Nobody will thank us for butting in on internal domestic issues like some overbearing big brother bully!
Alan B.

Dan says invite China in and see what they have to offer? I'd like to see that put to a referendum? On the condition if it fails? Then Dan will leave to live in either China or Russia that he clearly admires so much ASAP!

Perhaps even volunteer as a tank commander and given mouth watering carte blanche to machine down boys and girls as they cycle to school or their home!

Dan will possibly wonder why I hold him in such high esteem? Well it's due to the many gentle and humane comments he places here as a poster. He surely has to be, one of nature's gentlemen!?
Alan B.

Press freedom.

Whats your aim here?
Stir up a civil war so you can put a puppet ruler in like they did in Pakistan last month?
It'll be interesting to see what happens there in the next week.
You people just don't give a crap who gets in the way of your agendas?
It obvious from what's happening in Ukraine that people dying doesn't bother you one bit.
The US doesn't want to end the war it created.

Where's our press freedom?
Are you suggesting our news represents actual journalism?
I'm better off watching RT than our news.
It's probably better news than the kind we regurgitate,
- go look for yourself and tell me I'm wrong.
http://www.rt.com/

What would you lot advise the people to do if China decides to invade Australia?
Arm ourselves with molotov cocktails and make us all dead civilian combatants like Ukrainians did??
Fight to the last conscripted Australian, and never give in while you hide like a rat in your safe little bunker?

I don't want any part in America's wars, so why don't you go have a chat to Uncle Sam or the CCP and work things out?
If we had nukes we could stay neutral, and not be dragged into US wars.
Go blow your war trumpet elsewhere.

Our country's becoming such a turd country to live in that I'm starting to think life would be much that much better if I lived in Siberia.

Yes A.C. and you'd improve both countries if you moved.
And I agree that were we a nuclear armed nation we wouldn't need to contemplate fighting with China for our sovereignty or freedom. And if what's is now occurring to our immediate north doesn't force our recalcitrant pollies to act and arm us with nukes? Then what will?

Then there is all this talk of climate change and decarbing the economy. Nuclear power is the only 24/7 choice for baseload that is dispatchable and carbon-free. And if rolled out as MSR thorium comes with a price as low as 1 cent PKWH.

Renewables can't get below 3 cents and that is without the battery or pumped hydro that they'd need to be available 24/7 And that means that they cannot get below 9 cents before the wholesalers and the retailers add their margins, i.e., 18 cents and 36 cents or more if as now, state governments use reticulated energy as their personal ATM!
Alan B.

Once upon a time Radio Australia broadcast into PNG and the Pacific as a method of "soft diplomacy" and maintaining an ongoing presence in those areas.

However cutbacks to the ABC closed down that service and we subsequently surrendered the license for those radio frequencies which were immediately snapped up by China. I wonder how they will be used?

It was another example of short-sighted thinking for the sake of saving a few dollars.

Good point about the turd and Siberia Armchair Critic but I prefer Antarctica.

Fiji's PM's joy at Wong's visit centred around the good old climate 'emergency' lark. He is probably looking forward to Australian taxpayers money for the emergency that doesn't exist, and his island that is not sinking.

"There is only one scenario worse, that’s America moving in".

Sheesh!

I disagree that our next challenge is defending press freedom anywhere, but rather the cost to us of energy! As a front and centre issue!

Everything we make or use or are serviced by has an upward cascading energy component much of which includes a wholesale component, replete with tax liabilities and a retail component with even further tax liabilities.

I mean a loaf of bread is impacted to a greater or lessor degree by 40 different taxes! Fuel and PAYE?PAYG tax during the planting and harvesting the wheat. Sales tax on the machinery and trucks etc. Payroll tax during milling and baking etc.-etc.

Our tax system needs a complete overhaul as does what we charge ourselves for our coal, gas or sweet light crude. The latter only needing a simple sand filter and the addition of 4.7% methanol to become a superior source of transport diesel.

At the moment we export our sweet light crude and import the leavings of other refineries and then have to crack the (almost tar) hydrocarbon to extract a vastly inferior diesel!

Other countries which export their coal etc., have a domestic price and a quota and another for the export market?

And our coal, gas and oil is mined by foreigners who charge us export market prices? I say we should hold their export licenses until they charge us cost of production and transport here at home!

After all, it is our coal, gas and oil! And comes out of our ground! Governments need to do more than simply roll over and beg for a tummy rub! Growing a spine would be a useful start!
Alan B.

People who rubbish America should explain how, if the U.S-led world order is so terrible, what would a CCP-led world order be like? How would it be better?

Because, that’s our choice now: the US or the CCP. And there is no point in saying we can do both, because we are not talking about the country China, or Chinese people. We simply will never be able to get along with the Chinese Communist Party, the most evil version of the most evil system ever.

Hey ttbn,
Watch this and you'll find out why the US and Australia have little to no chance.
These countries will almost certainly choose China.
ASEAN nations want economic and trade partnerships to build their nations.
- And they have this with China.
The US doesn't care about them in this way, it only cares for the sake of regional influence against the threat of China.
- Too little too late -

Why Asia Pacific Chose China
http://youtu.be/3GQiTe4BNQ0

Mind you the US can find 53bln and expect all western countries to pitch in for Ukraine,
- which will be a virtually non-viable country without the Donbass.

The US and the West is in decline.

Eisenhower Farewell Address - 'Military Industrial Complex' WARNING
http://youtu.be/OyBNmecVtdU

He tried to tell us.