Anthony Albanese will make history this week when he becomes the first sitting prime minister to walk part of the gruelling Kokoda Track.
Accompanied by his Papua New Guinean counterpart James Marape, Australian Defence Force representatives and a select number of media, the group will walk from Kokoda Village through the unforgiving jungle to Isurava Village.
It’s there he will join Australians and Papua New Guineans for the annual Isurava Anzac Day service on Thursday.
His trip comes with a diplomatic element at a time of intense competition in the region and just days after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited the small Pacific nation on the weekend for the first time since 2022.
But as he prepared to board his flight, Mr Albanese said the trek would allow him to pay respect to the Australian service personnel who fought and died during the important Second World War battle of Kokoda.
What is Albo doing?
After attending an Anzac Day commemoration dinner hosted by Mr Marape on Monday, Mr Albanese will begin his 17km track on Tuesday morning.
Although just a small section of the 96km total trail, for two nights Mr Albanese will camp in the same places Australian soldiers did when they fought off the invading Japanese.
On his first day, he will pass through the Hoi Village and camp overnight in Deniki.
Then, on Wednesday, Mr Albanese and his travel companions will continue the walk to Isurava ahead of Thursday’s Dawn Service.
Ahead of his departure, Mr Albanese said being accompanied by Mr Marape “says a lot about how close the relationship is”.
“We’ll be paying tribute to the courage, the endurance and the sacrifice which Diggers made in World War II,” he said.
“Anzac Day is a sacred day for Australians, but it’s also a day that is commemorated in Papua New Guinea. And our relationship is very strong.
What is Kokoda?
The Kokoda campaign, which began in July 1942 and went until November, was part of Japan’s attempt to capture Port Moresby when it was an Australian territory.
For Australian forces, holding Port Moresby was crucial in defending Australia.
“Kokoda is the stuff of legend,” Mr Albanese said on Monday.
“As young Australians, we all learned at school the legendary status of those brave soldiers who fought against the odds at Kokoda.”
It began when the Japanese landed in Buna and Gona on the north coast before they made their way over the Owen Stanley Range – a mountain range that separates the northern part of the country from the south.
Over four months, the Australian and Japanese forces fought along a number of foot tracks, including at Kokoda, Deniki, Efogi, and Isurava.
Papuan Infantry Battalion soldiers fought alongside Australians, while thousands of civilians – who became known as the “Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels” – provided support, carrying supplies, building bases and evacuating the sick and wounded.
The Battle of Isurava – where Mr Albanese will mark Anzac Day – was the scene of some of the most intense fighting during the Kokoda campaign.
An estimated 99 Australians were killed and 111 wounded over six days in August 1942.
Australian forces re-entered Kokoda on November 2, and November 3 is now commemorated as Kokoda Day.
Mr Albanese will become the first sitting prime minister to walk the track, but some of his predecessors have visited the region before. Paul Keating famously kissed the ground at the Kokoda Memorial when he visited in 1992, and John Howard and Malcolm Turnbull both visited memorial sites during their prime ministerships.
Kevin Rudd walked the track while opposition leader in 2006 alongside then-government minister Joe Hockey. Scott Morrison walked the trail in 2009.