A new provision in the maritime law enforcement agreement between Papua New Guinea and the United States will allow US Coast Guard officers to board and search a vessel in the PNG's exclusive economic zone on the PNG's behalf, without the requirement for a PNG law officer to be present as a "ship rider".

This is the second such agreement the US has struck with a Pacific island country. It agreed a similar provision with the Federated States of Micronesia last year.

After China and the Solomon Islands signed a policing pact last year, the US is seeking to strengthen its security presence in the region in a bid to undermine China's growing influence.

That the latest move is targeted specifically at China was made explicit by the US Coast Guard, which said that any fishing vessel fishing in the PNG's exclusive economic zone may be boarded — "that is, any flagged vessel, including Chinese flagged".

Yet at a meeting of the agriculture and fishery ministers of China and Pacific island countries in Nanjing in May, where the two sides reached a consensus on cooperation in agriculture and fisheries, Papua New Guinea's Minister for Agriculture Aiya Tambua spoke favorably of his country's cooperation with China and its willingness to expand it.

Papua New Guinea and China have long-standing friendly relations. It established diplomatic ties with China in 1976, three years ahead of the US, and it was the first country in the region to sign a cooperation agreement with China under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. That agreement reached in 2018 was highly praised by former PNG prime minister Peter O'Neill in an interview on July 4, in which he said that it was driving economic growth and improving people's livelihoods.

That the US views Papua New Guinea, which is the largest country in the Pacific island region, as strategically important is clear. The US and PNG governments signed a defense agreement in May, which, according to PNG media reports, allows the US military to station troops, warships and aircraft in six key locations in Papua New Guinea, and to carry out "activities agreed upon by both parties", including surveillance, reconnaissance, refueling of ships, and troop build-up and deployment, without hindrance.

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape has sought to quell fears that the US' renewed interest in the country is really about positioning forces in the region targeting China, saying, "This is not about setting up for war", and the US does not need the PNG as a launch pad for any offensive anywhere in the world, pointing to "the cascading benefits that link to (our) economy and, more importantly, key economic infrastructure".

Yet the US undoubtedly has its own plans. These plans will serve the US' interests only and any benefits reaped by Papua New Guinea will be incidental. The Pacific island countries should be aware that all too often when the US has its eyes on a region, its actions are like winds before a storm.