Wong, Marles meet US counterparts, with China in focus
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defense Minister Richard Marles are meeting their US counterparts in Washington DC for annual talks expected to focus on Indo-Pacific security.
In addition to the duo, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met at the State Department, and all eyes turned to the Russia-Ukraine war and the fragile ceasefire in Gaza.
They are also expected to touch on countering China’s growing assertiveness towards Taiwan in the region, including the South China Sea.
Rubio praised the cooperation between Washington and Canberra on critical minerals, defense production and troop deployment, saying, “This is a very strong partnership, a strong alliance, and what we want to do is continue to develop it. We think there is great momentum behind this alliance.”
None of the four mentioned China by name in brief comments to reporters before the official meeting began, but the challenges Beijing has posed for years in the Pacific and elsewhere have been a central theme in U.S.-Australia relations.
US President Donald Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed a critical mineral agreement at the White House in October.
This comes after China introduced stricter rules on the export of its own critical minerals, which are used in technology from mobile phones to fighter jets and of which Beijing is the main producer and processor.
Following a meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping later that month, Beijing said it would pause these rules for a year.
“We must have critical mineral supplies and supply chains that are reliable and diverse and not overinvested in one place where they can be used as leverage against us or our partners around the world,” Rubio said Monday.
One element of this is the AUKUS pact, an agreement made under the Biden administration under which the US, UK and Australia committed to building an Australian submarine fleet supported by US nuclear technology.
“The alliance has always sought to deliver tangible benefits for our security and prosperity and that of the United States. And AUKUS is at the heart of that: a win for Australia, a win for the United States and a win for the United Kingdom,” Wong said.
“We are continuing at full speed.”
“We applaud Australia’s upcoming delivery of an additional US$1 billion ($A1.5 billion) to help expand US submarine production capacity. We are strengthening AUKUS to work for America, Australia and the UK,” Hegseth said.
Marles acknowledged and reaffirmed that the alliance with the United States was central to Australia’s security.
“We live in a much more contentious world where it’s really important to act together with our friends and allies, and frankly America is front and center for Australia in that respect,” he said.
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