Blinken to visit Papua New Guinea and sign defense, maritime agreements

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing titled "A Review of the President’s Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request: Investing in U.S. Security and Competitiveness, and the Path Ahead for the U.S.-China Relationship" on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 16, 2023. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Papua New Guinea on May 21-22, sign bilateral defense and maritime security agreements and meet with Pacific Islands Forum leaders, the State Department said on Thursday, after President Joe Biden pulled out of a planned visit.

An unfolding crisis over the U.S. debt ceiling prompted Biden on Tuesday to postpone a trip to Papua New Guinea. The U.S. is trying to counterbalance China's rising influence in the Indo-Pacific region and the Biden visit was seen as part of that effort.