Australia and East Timor signed a defence deal on Thursday to boost cyber and maritime security as Canberra seeks to curb China’s influence among its island neighbours.
Australia is East Timor’s largest defence and security partner and the agreement will significantly increase defence exercises, Defence Minister Richard Marles told reporters.
“This is a time to double down on friendship, to double down on family,” he said in East Timor’s capital Dili.
Australia will provide A$62 million (US$44 million) for cybersecurity, maritime security, infrastructure, disaster relief and training, under a defence framework signed on Thursday by Marles and East Timor’s Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao, according to a statement from Canberra.