Australian Foreign Minister Warned Timor-Leste Not to Borrow From Communist China

It was reported that Australia’s foreign minister reminded the country during a visit to Timor-Leste on Thursday (Sept. 1) not to owe Communist China an unsustainable debt on a large gas project.

 Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said she is a friend of East Timorese President Jose Ramos-Horta in discussing the Greater Sunrise field, a $50 billion undersea gas field. The Greater Sunrise field sits on the border between Australia and East Timor.

 Since East Timor became independent from Indonesia in 2002, Australia and Timor-Leste have been discussing how to share the benefits of the Greater Sunrise field.

 Under a maritime boundary treaty signed by the two countries in 2018, East Timor will receive 80% of its revenue if gas is piped to Australia and 70% if it is piped to Timor-Leste.

 Jose Ramos-Horta said last month that he was prepared to seek funding from Communist China for a Tais Mane infrastructure project that would transport natural gas from the Great Sunrise oil field to East Timor.

 Penny Wong told reporters in Dili, the capital of East Timor, that Australia hopes to help East Timor develop.

 Penny Wong said that we know that economic dynamism may be affected, subject to unsustainable debt burdens or other attempted lenders. But it is hoped that Timor- Leste, an island nation of 1.5 million people, will become more dynamic through Australia’s assistance.