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Speech by H. E. the Prime Minister, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão
Dili, 28 January 2026

 

Presidency of the Council of Ministers

Spokesperson of the Government of Timor-Leste

Ninth Constitutional Government

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Press Release

Extraordinary Meeting of the Council of Ministers on January 30th 2026

The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and approved two draft Decree-Laws presented by Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão and Finance Minister Santina José Rodrigues F. Viegas Cardoso, relating to the Statute of the Oe-Cússe Ambeno Region and the Special Development Fund for Oe-Cússe Ambeno.

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With the first draft decree-law, the aim is, more than a decade after the creation of the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cússe Ambeno, to review and update the regulatory framework governing its organisation and functioning in order to correct dysfunctions identified in its practical application and to adapt the institutional model to the current guidelines for administrative decentralisation and the strengthening of local power in Timor-Leste.

The reform aims to harmonise the Region’s regime with the model of the Municipal Authorities and the Administrative Authority of Ataúro, clarify mechanisms for government oversight, and establish a transitional period for institutional capacity-building, while strengthening cooperation between the Central and Regional Administrations and improving control, transparency, and efficiency in the management of public resources, ensuring sustained development for the benefit of the population.

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The second draft decree-law approved aims to implement the second amendment to the legal regime of the Oe-Cússe Ambeno Special Development Fund, strengthening governance, decision-making and expenditure execution, and the mechanisms for controlling and monitoring funded projects.

Among the key changes, we highlight the replacement of the current Board of Directors with a collegial Board of Trustees, maintaining the Sole Auditor as the body responsible for economic and financial oversight, as well as the creation of the RAEOA Project Secretariat, designed to provide technical and administrative support for the preparation, execution, and monitoring of investments.

This draft decree-law also aims to clarify the regime applicable to the Fund’s human resources, aligning it with the general civil service regime in force in the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cússe Ambeno, and to ensure an orderly transition to the new administration model, thereby ensuring the continuity of ongoing processes, contracts, and obligations and promoting more efficient, transparent, and results-oriented management in the economic and social development of the Region.

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The draft Decree-Law presented by the Minister of Defence, Donaciano do Rosário Gomes, which aimed to suspend, on an exceptional basis, the retirement age limit for current general officers holding the positions of Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMGFA – acronym in Portuguese), Vice CEMGFA, and Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces (CEMFA – acronym in Portuguese), was also approved.

Through this draft decree-law, the 9th Constitutional Government recognises the need, on an exceptional basis, to ensure that the current holders of the positions of CEMGFA, Vice-CEMGFA, and CEMFA remain in office until the end of their respective terms, allowing the necessary transition to future leadership, recognising the experience of the current commanders, and avoiding abrupt disruptions.

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The Council of Ministers approved the government’s draft resolution, also presented by the Minister of Defence, which ratifies the lists of military personnel who, on December 31^st, 2025, will transition to reserve status and of veteran military personnel who will transition to retirement status.

This decision complies with the legal regime governing military careers, in particular the Statute of Military Personnel of the FALINTIL–Defence Forces of Timor-Leste (F-FDTL – acronym in Portuguese) and Decree-Law No. 8/2025, ensuring the administrative regularisation of transitions to the reserve and retirement for military personnel who have reached the legal age limits or meet the conditions set out in the law. The approval of this resolution also aims to ensure a fair and dignified retirement process for veterans, in line with the objectives set out in the 9th Constitutional Government Program for the area of Defence. END

2.30 PM, Government Palace

Media Statement By His Excellency Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste

Government Palace, Dili, January 28th, 2026

The Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and the Government of Australia signed, on Tuesday, January 28^th, 2026, at the Government Palace in Dili, the Joint Declaration on the Establishment of a Parseria Foun ba Era Foun (New Partnership for a New Era), following the bilateral meeting between the Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, and the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese. 

The declaration establishes a new framework for bilateral cooperation, structured around three pillars—peace and regional integration, prosperity and resilience, and people-to-people and institutional links — “recognising the strength of this partnership.” The document affirms that “Timor-Leste and Australia are partners and neighbours with a shared history, values, region, and future” and commits both governments to maintaining “continuous cooperation, consultation, and mutual respect for national sovereignty”.

In the areas of peace and regional integration, the statement reaffirms the defence of international law and the peaceful resolution of disputes, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and Australia’s support for Timor-Leste’s regional integration. In this regard, the Australian Prime Minister emphasises that “Timor-Leste’s recent accession to the Association of Southeast Asia is a historic achievement that reflects our shared commitment to regional cooperation.”

Anthony Albanese also highlights the historical ties between the two peoples, stating that “There is a deep reservoir of respect, friendship and solidarity between the Timorese and Australian people” and that “These connections are deeply personal, forged through shared experiences during the Second World War, the Timorese struggle for independence, and the vibrant Timorese diaspora in Australia”

In his statement after the bilateral meeting, Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão said it was “a great honour to welcome Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to Timor-Leste for this Official Visit”, adding that the visit represents “an important moment in the relationship between our two countries and reflects the depth of friendship, trust and partnership between Timor-Leste and Australia”.

The Timorese Head of Government said that “our discussions today were warm, open and productive” and that both countries agreed to “establish a new partnership for a new era that reflects the maturity of our relationship and our shared future.” He also emphasised that “Our relationship has been shaped by solidarity in times of conflict and by partnership in peace” and that “today, we reaffirmed our shared commitment to a peaceful and prosperous region”.

Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão also noted that “we reaffirmed the importance of international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea”, recalling that “Our 2018 Maritime Boundary Treaty remains a powerful example of how disputes can be resolved peacefully and fairly through dialogue and law”.

On the economic and energy front, the Prime Minister reiterated that “Timor-Leste’s position on Greater Sunrise has always been clear – the natural gas from Greater Sunrise must be processed onshore in Timor-Leste”, adding that he had reaffirmed to his Australian counterpart that the country is committed to moving forward with the project in a “commercially sound, technically robust and aligned with the interests of our people”. He also indicated that the two Governments had agreed to “accelerate our negotiations to finalise the Petroleum Mining Code, the Production Sharing Contract and the Fiscal regime expeditiously”.

Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão also emphasised the centrality of human relations, stating that “people-to-people links remain at the heart of our relationship” and noting that “at a time of global change and uncertainty, Timor-Leste highly values our partnership with Australia”.

On the Timorese side, the bilateral meeting was attended by Vice Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister of Economic Affairs and Minister of Tourism and Environment, Francisco Kalbuadi Lay; Vice Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Affairs and Minister of Rural Development and Community Housing, Mariano Assanami Sabino; Minister of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Agio Pereira; Minister of Finance, Santina José Rodrigues F. Viegas Cardoso; Minister of Defence, Donaciano do Rosário Gomes; Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Francisco da Costa Monteiro; Minister of the Interior, Francisco da Costa Guterres; Secretary of State for Vocational Training and Employment, Rogério Araújo Mendonça; and Ambassador of Timor-Leste to Australia, Inês de Almeida.

The Joint Declaration also provides for the development of a Joint Action Plan, to be coordinated by the ministries responsible for foreign policy in both countries, with regular monitoring mechanisms to ensure the implementation of the New Partnership for a New Era.

Presidency of the Council of Ministers

Spokesperson of the Government of Timor-Leste

Ninth Constitutional Government

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Dili, January 28^th, 2026

Joint Declaration on Establishing a

Parseria Foun ba Era Foun (New Partnership for a New Era)

between the Government of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste and the Government of Australia

1. Timor-Leste and Australia are partners and neighbours with a shared history, values, region and future. Recognising the strength of the partnership, His Excellency Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, Prime Minister of Timor-Leste and the Honourable Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia decide to establish a Parseria Foun ba Era Foun (“Parseria”), which is Tetum for a New Partnership for a New Era. In declaring the Parseria, both Governments commit to ongoing cooperation, consultation and mutual respect for national sovereignty.

 

Pillar One: Peace and Regional Integration                            

2. As close friends and neighbours, relations between Timor-Leste and Australia are underpinned by a common interest in each other’s success. We share a vision for a region that is peaceful, stable and prosperous. We will work together to uphold international law, protect human rights and prevent conflict.

3. Peace, security and stability are necessary preconditions for economic and social development in Australia, Timor-Leste and our shared region. We commit to regular communication, consultation and collaboration on our common security interests, including maritime security, efforts to prevent human trafficking, people smuggling, transnational crime and critical infrastructure.4. Australia recognises that Timor-Leste’s ASEAN membership is an historic achievement, and a significant milestone for Timor-Leste’s long-standing commitment to regional integration. Australia is proud to have supported Timor-Leste’s ASEAN journey from the beginning and will continue to support Timor-Leste’s priorities as an ASEAN Member State, so that ASEAN membership delivers direct benefits for the Timorese people and contributes positively to regional peace, stability and prosperity. We reaffirm our shared commitment to ASEAN centrality and the importance of ASEAN-led regional architecture that is open, transparent, rules-based and inclusive.

5. Our police, border security and immigration agencies will continue to work together to reinforce our shared security. We will further strengthen the Timor-Leste Police Development Program and cooperation under the Memorandum of Understanding on Migration and Border Management. We will continue to facilitate business and leisure travel between our countries, including through access for Timorese citizens to Australia’s 10-year Frequent Traveller Stream visa.

6. Recognising the importance of uplifting regional resilience to cyber risks, we will work closely to build cyber security skills and capabilities, enhance public awareness of cyber risks and strengthen cyber-related information sharing between law enforcement agencies.
 
7. Australia and Timor-Leste share a history of deep defence cooperation. We affirm our commitment to continuing to develop a modern defence relationship based on partnership, sovereignty and the interests of our two countries. Through the Defence Cooperation Program, we will further strengthen the mutually beneficial and longstanding collaboration between our defence forces to collectively contribute to national, regional and international stability and security.

8. As demonstrated by the 2018 Treaty Between Australia and the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste Establishing Their Maritime Boundaries in the Timor Sea (the Maritime Boundary Treaty), we reaffirm the value and importance of international rules and institutions, and resolving disputes peacefully in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). We reaffirm the universal and unified character of UNCLOS which sets out the comprehensive legal framework within which all activities in the oceans and seas must be carried out.

9. Recognising that climate change will exacerbate the frequency and intensity of natural disasters, we commit to offering to assist each other following significant disasters and to building mechanisms for improved coordination. Australia commits to strengthen support for locally-led disaster preparedness and recovery efforts, including through professional development. We express our support for international efforts, including through the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage, to assist countries and communities that are experiencing and particularly vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change. We further commit to cooperation on climate change mitigation and adaptation, including through supporting the development and transfer of appropriate and accessible technologies and related capacity-building to support resilience and climate-responsive development.

 

Pillar Two: Prosperity and Resilience

10. Australia and Timor-Leste share an ambition for Greater Sunrise to be developed as soon as possible for the benefit of both States as envisioned by the historic Maritime Boundary Treaty. Guided by the same spirit of friendship and cooperation in which we agreed the Treaty and facilitated the Sunrise Joint Venture’s carrying out of the historic independent Concept Study in 2024, Australia and Timor-Leste commit to working closely together and with the Sunrise Joint Venture in good faith to develop an ambitious timeline to conclude the Petroleum Mining Code, Greater Sunrise Production Sharing Contract, and fiscal regime framework required under the Maritime Boundary Treaty, thus enabling concrete progress towards development of the resource. Australia’s Minister for Resources and Timor-Leste’s Minister for Petroleum and Mineral Resources further commit to close bilateral engagement, over the coming months, to directly oversee accelerated negotiations to finalise the above documents expeditiously.

11. Noting the Concept Study and the importance of Timor-Leste’s economic resilience, Australia and Timor-Leste encourage the Sunrise Joint Venture to make use of the Study and present to the States as soon as possible a Development Concept proposal for Greater Sunrise that can satisfy the requirements of the Maritime Boundary Treaty. We also commit to supporting the Sunrise Joint Venture to progress the project swiftly upon the States’ approval of a single Development Concept.

12. Australia acknowledges Timor-Leste’s commitment to onshore processing and to the south coast Tasi Mane project. Australia will support any commercially viable solution to develop Greater Sunrise proposed by the Sunrise Joint Venture consistent with the Maritime Boundary Treaty. This is critical to advance our shared goal of ensuring the project supports economic diversification in Timor-Leste and delivers long-term sustainable socio-economic benefits for its people. Development of Greater Sunrise should support the economic, political and social stability of Timor-Leste, to which Australia is strongly committed. A stable, independent and prosperous Timor-Leste will be a beacon for other States in the region and is important to Australia.

13. As with past experience during management of the Joint Petroleum Development Area, Australia will assist Timor-Leste by sharing, through its relevant departments and regulatory agencies, technical and regulatory knowledge on health, safety, environmental and other relevant subjects. Australia would also establish an Infrastructure Fund to be used in Timor-Leste and allocate to it a fixed ten per cent share of total States’ upstream revenue from the Greater Sunrise project, funded entirely from Australia’s share of future revenue. Australia would establish the Fund once any commercially viable solution proposed by the commercial parties is agreed by the States consistent with the requirements of the Maritime Boundary Treaty. This commitment will see at least a third of Australia’s revenue from the project being provided to Timor-Leste via the Infrastructure Fund. The Fund would be established and co-designed in the spirit of partnership, with respect for Timor-Leste’s sovereignty and the importance of an established and mutually-endorsed LNG operator for Greater Sunrise.

14. We will continue our strong partnership to ensure Australia’s labour mobility programs are mutually beneficial and deliver positive economic and social outcomes for workers, their families and businesses in both countries. We will also work together to boost technical and vocational education and training (TVET) for Timorese youth. Through this partnership, Timor-Leste and Australia will work together towards enabling 10,000 Timorese workers to take up employment opportunities in Australia by 2027-28, including through the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme.

15. Timor-Leste and Australia will ensure our development cooperation promotes Timor-Leste’s prosperity and resilience. Through locally-led development, we will support quality services; inclusive and sustainable economic growth; and efforts to ensure all Timorese people can equally thrive and prosper.

16. Timor-Leste and Australia are committed to working together in support of the implementation of Timor-Leste’s Strategic Development Plan 2011–2030, with a focus on economic diversification, job creation and the sustainable development of strategic sectors including petroleum, agriculture and tourism.

17. We commit to identifying and actioning opportunities to enhance private sector development, including through boosting two-way trade and investment as part of Invested: Australia’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040. We will also partner to enable the delivery of infrastructure which generates sustainable economic growth and local employment in Timor-Leste, including through the Australian Infrastructure Financing Facility for the Pacific (AIFFP). These efforts will have a particular focus on semi-skilled positions.

18. As a fellow maritime state, Australia respects Timor-Leste’s deep connections to the ocean. We will pursue opportunities to enhance our Blue Economy cooperation, including supporting the Policy and Action Plan for the Promotion of a Resilient and Sustainable Ocean Economy in Timor-Leste (2025-2035) and through exchanging lessons on marine ecotourism and the management of Marine Protected Areas.

 

Pillar Three: People-to-People and Institutional Linkages

19. We commit to deepening the friendships, collaborations and solidarity between the Timorese and Australian people. These links are built on common values, including a deep respect in both countries for democracy and human rights.

20. We will continue to strengthen the education, cultural, social and religious connections between our communities, including through Community Friendship Groups, the Australian Volunteers Program, the Australian NGO Cooperation Program and Australia Awards scholarships.

 21. We recognise the enduring bonds between Timorese and Australian veterans, maintained through Timor-Leste’s Council of Combatants of National Liberation. We will continue to strengthen the Anzac Day commemorations in Dili, and foster collaboration on historical and commemorative tourism to honour and preserve our shared history.

22. We will work to deepen institutional links by supporting twinning arrangements between government agencies and parliaments, and encourage twinning between civil society and media organisations.

23. We recognise that our youth are our future. We will work closely and invest in creating new education, training, employment and leadership development opportunities for Timorese youth, including for PALM scheme workers returning to Timor-Leste. We will also establish initiatives for emerging leaders in both countries to engage and build lifelong connections.

 

Joint Plan of Action

24. We task our Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and Minister for Foreign Affairs respectively to coordinate the formulation of a Joint Plan of Action to realise the Parseria. Both countries will review implementation, including through annual Senior Officials’ Talks.

25. The Foreign Ministers of Timor-Leste and Australia will endeavour to meet in-person at least once a year to discuss priorities for further enhancing relations between the two countries.

 

Done in two original copies, each in Portuguese and English languages, in Dili on the 28^th day of January, 2026.

On 27 January 2026, at the Embassy of Japan in Dili, the grant agreement for the project “Capacity Building Project for Agricultural Technical Training Schools in Eastern Timor-Leste” was signed. The project is funded by the Government of Japan and implemented by the Japanese NGO PARCIC. 

The agreement, signed by the Ambassador of Japan to Timor-Leste, Yamamoto Yasushi, and by the PARCIC representative, Ito Junko, was witnessed by the President of the Baucau Municipal Authority, Veneranda E. M. Lemos Martins, the Director-General of Technical Schools of the Ministry of Education, Deolindo da Cruz, and the Director-General of Agriculture, Coffee and Industrial Crops of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Forestry, Martinho Laurentino Soares.

With a total budget of approximately USD 340,000, the project will begin its first phase in March 2026 and will run for two years (2026–2028). The intervention foresees activities carried out in coordination with private agricultural schools and technical centres in the eastern region of the country, including basic laboratory soil analysis, the production of agricultural inputs (soil improvement materials) based on local and natural resources, outreach activities with farmers, and training in business management, ranging from production practices to the distribution of agricultural inputs, with support for the development of business ideas in the sector. In its first year, the project will work in partnership with the Baucau Community Development Centre (CDC).

PARCIC, a Japanese NGO present in Timor-Leste since 2002, develops projects with rural communities in the areas of production and value addition of local products, including initiatives related to coffee, food processing and nutrition, in cooperation with community groups in several municipalities.