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Police called on diplomats as APEC summit tensions boil over
PORT MORESBY, Nov 18, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Police were called when Chinese
officials attempted to “barge” into the office of Papua New Guinea’s foreign
minister, it emerged Sunday, as APEC summit tensions boiled over.
The Chinese delegates “tried to barge in” to Rimbink Pato’s Port Moresby
office Saturday, in an eleventh-hour bid to influence a summit draft
communique, but were denied entry, three sources with knowledge of the
situation told AFP.
“Police were posted outside the minister’s office after they tried to barge
in,” one source privy to summit negotiations told AFP, requesting anonymity.
The diplomatic incident came with tensions already high at a summit of
Asian-Pacific leaders that has been overshadowed by a spat between the United
States and China.
Pato had refused to meet with the delegates, according to a source, who
said: “It’s not appropriate for the minister to negotiate solo with the
Chinese. The Chinese negotiating officials know this.”
The minister himself sought to downplay the incident, telling AFP: “There
wasn’t an issue.”
Asked about the incident, Chinese foreign ministry official Zhang Xiaolong
told reporters: “It’s not true. It’s simply not true”.
APEC nations usually agree a joint statement but officials are struggling
to bridge deep divides on trade policy and admit that a formal communique may
not be issued.
This is not the first time Chinese officials have been involved in a tense
incident at a regional meeting.
At the Pacific Islands Forum in September, Nauru’s president demanded
China apologise after its delegation walked out of a meeting when the host
refused to let an envoy speak until island leaders had finished.
“They’re not our friends. They just need us for their own purposes,”
President Baron Waqa said at the time.
BSS/AFP/RY/15:20 hrs