PORT MORESBY -- One day last month, jets ferried U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and French President Emmanuel Macron in and out of the same Pacific island airport 9,000 miles from their home bases. They had come to see regional power broker James Marape.
The same day, a different issue at the airport highlighted more immediate domestic challenges for Papua New Guinea's in-demand prime minister: PNG flag carrier Air Niugini had to ground all domestic flights because of a lack of foreign reserves to buy fuel.
