Australian Army Chief bids farewell
Chief of the Australian Army, Lieutenant General David Morrison AO, has bid farewell to PNG as he draws the curtain on his 36 years of service in the Army.
At a parade held by the Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF) in his honour at Murray Barracks on Thursday 9 April, Lieutenant General Morrison explained that his frequent visits to PNG were an indication of the importance of the Australia-PNG relationship.
Lieutenant General Morrison said Australia and PNG’s shared strategic environment, given our geographic proximity, means our security is necessarily intertwined, and requires a strong PNGDF and a strong Australian Defence Force to ensure regional security as partners.
He said Australia and PNG’s shared history, and in particular shared military history, provided bedrock upon which to build a strong future together. His deep affinity and affection for the PNG people and culture continually drew him back to PNG.
Lieutenant General Morrison first visited PNG in 1990, living at Moem Barracks in Wewak and at Taurama Barracks in Port Moresby. He subsequently visited PNG numerous times throughout his career, including a visit every year he was Chief of the Australian Army, from 2011 to 2015.
There is no country Lieutenant General Morrison has visited more during his career than PNG, and Lieutenant General Morrison made sure that his last visit before he retires in May would be to PNG.
Lieutenant General Morrison welcomed Commander PNGDF Brigadier General Gilbert Toropo’s efforts to regenerate the PNGDF, commending the new soldiers on display at the parade. He also emphasised Australia’s continuing support to assist Brigadier General Toropo’s efforts to make the PNGDF more capable and professional.
Following his visit to Murray Barracks, Lieutenant General Morrison flew in a PNGDF helicopter to Goldie River Training Depot, where he then witnessed the training being conducted with the Long Range Reconnaissance Unit and Australian and New Zealand Special Forces. This training is preparing the PNGDF to assist the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary to provide major event security at the Pacific Games this year and APEC in 2018.