Notes to the New CNO Series

By Jason lancaster

Despite U.S. and allied development aid contributions dwarfing PRC contributions in the South Pacific, the PRC has made significant regional gains in influence.PRC competition means the region can no longer be treated as a geostrategic backwater. Its 14 countries are small, but their economic exclusion zones cover 20 percent of the earth’s surface, and their locations are strategically important in the Pacific.

The U.S. Navy has sporadically engaged in sports diplomacy with USNA rugby teams and visiting ships. It should make sports diplomacy more systematic and enduring. The U.S. Navy should invest in regular rugby matches in the South Pacific as part of global competition with the PRC.

The region craves attention that the U.S. has seldom given. No U.S. president has ever visited a Pacific Island country. President clinton hosted the last pacific Island Leader, while PRC President Xi Jinping has visited Papua New Guinea and Fiji, and hosted many leaders one-on-one in Beijing. A regular sports diplomacy routine can provide a gateway for key leader engagements by creating high-profile events that earn the broader attention of the South Pacific population. Australia signed an agreement with Papua New Guinea providing $600 million australian dollars for a National Rugby League (NRL) Expansion team in Port Moresby in 2028. Shortly after the agreement, Papua New Guinea signed defense agreements with Australia, suggesting a confluence of interests and engagements.