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Billy Joseph
Headshot of Joseph wearing a suit and sunglasses
Joseph in August 2025
Minister of the Papua New Guinea Defense Force
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 19, 2024
MonarchCharles III
Prime MinisterJames Marape
Preceded byWin Bakri Daki
Deputy Chairman of Economic Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office
February 9, 2022
Personal details
CitizenshipPapua New Guinea
Political partySocial Democratic (DS)
EducationUniversity of Papua New Guinea
OccupationPolitician

William "Billy" Joseph[1] is a Papua New Guinean politician and former surgeon who currently serves as the Minister for Defense of Papua New Guinea since 2024. First elected in the 2022 Papua New Guinean general election to represent the Nipa-Kutubu District, he became deputy leader of the Social Democratic Party. Following a cabinet reshuffle in January 2024, he was appointed the Minister for Defense, taking over from Win Bakri Daki.

Education

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Joseph held a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Papua New Guinea School of Medicine and Health Sciences, and went on to become a medical doctor. Upon his election in 2022, he was the fourth doctor in the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea.[2]

Political career

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In the 2022 Papua New Guinean general election, Joseph was elected as MP for the Nipa-Kutubu District. In an interview with The National, he stated that work in politics was an extension of medical work, as doctors "deal with all kinds of problems that people bring to the hospital". He cited violence against women and outdated medical infrastructure as examples of such problems, noting how the COVID-19 pandemic had strained the medical system.[2] He joined fellow doctors Wabag MP Dr. Lino Tom, Tewai-Siassi MP Dr. Kobby Bomareo, and Abau MP Dr. Sir Puka Temu in Parliament.[3]

That September he became Deputy Chairman of Economic Affairs, and joined the Parliamentary Committee on Law and Order, Public Works and Public Accounts. He is Deputy Party Leader of the Social Democratic Party.[4]

He was appointed Defense Minister during the shuffle of the PNG Parliament's cabinet on January 19, 2024, and began his first term on the same day under the Marape-Rosso cabinet.[5][6]

Joseph talked about the devastation during the 2024 Enga landslide. He flew in a helicopter where he flew to Yambali where he gave a check of 500,000 kina for buying supplies for 4,000 displaced survivors.[7][8]

On March 19, 2025, Joseph went to The 2nd Japan Pacific Islands Defense Dialogue and met Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara to strengthen defense relations with Japan.[9]

During the same month, he announced 'Operation Planti Balus'. This is to provide with transportation supplies in the rural areas of PNG. This is along with the activities leading to the 50th anniversary of PNG's Independence. The operation officially started from September 3 and ended on September 5.[10]

Foreign relations

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Billy Joseph (center) with Papua New Guinean, New Zealand, and Australian officials in April 2024.

Australia

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Main article: Australia–Papua New Guinea relations

On February 20, 2025, Joseph and Australian Minister for Defense Richard Marles began discussing a new defense treaty between the two nations.[11] In June 2025, Joseph went to Canberra for the 2025 Defense Conference ‘Preparedness and Resilience’ meeting. He went on the Stop the World! Podcast, hosted by ASPI, with the Deputy Party Leader of the Social Democratic Party to discuss the Pukpuk Treaty.[12][13]

On September 13, 2025, Joseph and Marles made an agreement to integrate the Australian and PNG militaries. This coincided with the 50th anniversary of PNG's independence.[14][15] This was also mainly due to Chinese influence in the Pacific.[16] The treaty was officially signed on September 15.[17] On September 19, China responded with a warning to PNG claiming that undermining it interests in a treaty. Joseph is expected to go on a visit to China to discuss about the agreement in person with Xi Jinping.[18]

Indonesia

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In July 2025, Joseph visited Jakarta with Indonesian Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin to discuss stronger defense ties. They discussed further implementing the Defense Cooperation Agreement, which had been signed in 2010 and ratified by Indonesia in 2012.[19]

Singapore

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In June 2025, Joseph went to Singapore for the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD) to discuss about security trends. He held bilateral meetings from the sidelines of IISS. This includes New Zealand, Singapore and Chile.[20]

References

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  1. ^ Admin (19 January 2024). "NEC Appoints Six New Ministers to Cabinet - National Information Center". Retrieved 23 September 2025.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Another doctor in House". The National. 13 September 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  3. ^ "Another Medical Doctor Enters PNG Parliament". PNG Health Watch. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  4. ^ "Hon Dr Billy M Joseph MP". ASPI. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  5. ^ "Hon. Dr. Billy Joseph, MP - Eleventh Parliament of Papua New Guinea". www.parliament.gov.pg. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  6. ^ pcAdminPNG (18 January 2024). "Daki out, Dr Joseph in as Defence minister". Post Courier. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  7. ^ "Formally asking for help, Papua New Guinea says Friday's landslide buried more than 2,000 people". PBS News. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  8. ^ "'We cannot live here': Australian ministers visit PNG landslide zone". SBS News. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  9. ^ "Japan-Papua Niugini Minister's Meeting". Japan Ministry of Defense. 19 March 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2025.
  10. ^ National, The (19 September 2025). "'Operation Planti Balus' in August | The National". Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  11. ^ "Australia, Papua New Guinea vow to strike defense treaty". Voice of America. 20 February 2025. Retrieved 19 September 2025.
  12. ^ "Papua New Guinea Defence Minister Billy Joseph on the march towards a security treaty". ASPI. 18 June 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  13. ^ "PNG AND AUSTRALIA DISCUSS DEFENCE TREATY". www.pngbusinessnews.com. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  14. ^ "Australia and PNG's militaries to become 'totally integrated'". ABC News. 13 September 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  15. ^ "Albanese says Australia-PNG defence treaty on par with US and New Zealand". SBS News. 15 September 2025. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  16. ^ McIlroy, Tom (16 September 2025). "Australia and PNG will agree to defend each other from military attack as China's Pacific influence grows". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  17. ^ Doherty, Ben (23 August 2025). "'Diplomatic knife fight' over PNG enters new phase with deepening Australia defence deal". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  18. ^ "China Warns Papua New Guinea Over Australian Defense Deal". The Defense Post. 19 September 2025. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  19. ^ "Indonesia, Papua New Guinea eye stronger defense ties". Antara News. 8 July 2025. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  20. ^ National, The (26 September 2025). "Minister attends security conference | The National". Retrieved 26 September 2025.
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