CHINA SAYS PAPUA NEW GUINEA ARTILLERY SHELL IS A WINE BOTTLE

Police in Port Moresby arrested four Chinese nationals after a 32kg cylindrical object with a pointed end was found inside a shipping container on Friday. Accounts differ on whether it was discovered at a shipping wharf or a construction site in the Papua New Guinea capital. Police and military officers launched a joint investigation and x-rayed the object. Commissioner David Manning called it "a very concerning discovery" and said the area was secured "to prevent the risk of harm". China's embassy in Papua New Guinea disputed that, saying on Facebook that the object is a "shell-shaped wine bottle" that "poses no danger at all".

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that unnamed sources had identified the object as an undetonated 130mm Chinese Type 59 Artillery Projectile containing chemical explosives and a fuse, though this has not been independently verified. Papua New Guinea police earlier dismissed suggestions that it was merely a dummy, the Post Courier newspaper reported. China's embassy said the country enforces "some of the world's strictest firearm control laws and regulations" and that it is "virtually impossible" for a military-grade artillery shell to be smuggled out of China. It added that China is "widely recognised as one of the safest countries globally".

The claim drew scepticism on social media, with one Facebook user asking: "What sort of wine bottle weighs 32 kilograms?" Others noted that the object carried no labels identifying it as a wine bottle. Some users shared images of a plastic "artillery round" bottle holder sold on Etsy, far lighter than the object found in Port Moresby. Papua New Guinea authorities have not said when their investigation will conclude or whether further charges will follow the arrests.