CANBERRA, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles met with his Papua New Guinea (PNG) counterpart Billy Joseph in Brisbane on Thursday to open talks on a formal treaty-level defense agreement.

In a statement released ahead of the meeting, Marles said he wanted to take Australia's relationship with PNG to the "next level."

"The shared ambition for a treaty-level agreement would expand and modernize Australia and Papua New Guinea's defense relationship and facilitate deeper integration," he said.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that there is no timeline to finalize negotiations but that both sides "are keen to move rapidly" on reaching an agreement.

Australia and PNG signed off on a sweeping security agreement in December 2023. Enditem

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