Julie Bishop ready for her close-up with Boris Johnson

Julie Bishop will meet Britain’s new Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson at counter-terror talks in the US this week.

Julie Bishop has arranged to meet Boris Johnson on the sidelines of counter-terrorism talks in Washington this week, their first encounter since his appointment as British Foreign Secretary.

The Foreign Minister will today join Defence Minister Marise Payne in the US capital for talks on “accelerating” the campaign against the Islamic State terrorist group in the Middle East and tackling the group’s global networks.

Ms Bishop said she would meet many foreign counterparts including Mr Johnson, Ibrahim al-Ja’afari of Iraq and Bert Koenders of The Netherlands. Ms Bishop met Mr Johnson during his tenure as London’s lord mayor, and said she was “struck by his charm, his wit, his humour, and his intelligence”. “I would not underestimate Boris Johnson. He’s mischievous, he’s very cheeky, he has got a real glint in his eye,” she told ABC TV.

Ms Bishop also plans to meet Brett McGurk, Barack Obama’s special envoy to the coalition of nations fighting to defeat Islamic State militants.

She will announce a further $15 million in aid for Iraq.