Papua New Guinea Defence Force
The Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of Papua New Guinea. It originated from the Australian Army land forces of the territory of Papua New Guinea before independence, coming into being in January 1973 and having its antecedents in the Pacific Islands Regiment. The PNGDF is a small force, numbering around 3,600 personnel, and consists of a Land Element, an Air Element and a Maritime Element. It is a joint force tasked with defending Papua New Guinea and its territories against external attack, as well as having secondary functions including national-building and internal security tasks.
PNGDF soldiers at Taurama Barracks
Admiral Patrick Walsh, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, reviews a Papua New Guinea Defence Force Honor guard
A PNGDF soldier in Kumul uniform with an M16 rifle
A PNGDF soldier in 2017
Papua New Guinea, officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania that comprises the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and its offshore islands in Melanesia. It shares its only land border with Indonesia to the west and it is directly adjacent to Australia to the south and the Solomon Islands to the east. Its capital, located along its southeastern coast, is Port Moresby. The country is the world's third largest island country, with an area of 462,840 km2 (178,700 sq mi).
Kerepunu women at the marketplace of Kalo, British New Guinea, 1885
Female gable image, Sawos people, Oceanic art in the Bishop Museum
British annexation of southeast New Guinea in 1884
Australian forces attack Japanese positions during the Battle of Buna–Gona, 7 January 1943.