Top British officials touching down to touch base on AUKUS

AUKUS will be the focus of talks between UK and Australian ministers including British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Defence Secretary John Healey, in Sydney on Friday.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles in London in December 2024. Picture: AFP

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Leading British officials are touching down in Australia for in-person discussions with their counterparts on the defence relationship and progress on AUKUS, as Anthony Albanese faces ongoing pressure over when he will land a sit-down meeting with US President Donald Trump.

Defence Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong will on Friday host UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Defence Secretary John Healey in Sydney for the Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations (AUKMIN).

“The United Kingdom is a critical partner for Australia,” Mr ­Marles said. “We continue to work closely together, including through the AUKUS partnership, to address shared strategic challenges in an increasingly complex and uncertain world.”

The meeting follows Britain sending a Royal Navy aircraft carrier and accompanying fleet to Darwin this week in what is the first such visit in nearly 30 years.

Operation High Mast, which involves more than 3000 UK personnel, was launched in April in a sign of Britain’s intention to ramp up its presence in the Indo-Pacific, as questions are raised over China’s intention to reunify Taiwan in coming years and tension between Beijing and the US continues to rise.

Senator Wong and Mr Marles will likely discuss the operation with their counterparts on Friday, along with the role of AUKUS in maintaining peace in the region.

British Defence Secretary John Healey, left, and Foreign Secretary David Lammy in London. Picture: Getty Images

“Australia and the United Kingdom are longstanding friends and partners. In these uncertain times, we are strengthening and modernising our relationship to advance our shared interests,” Senator Wong said.

“From building defence capability and boosting economic resilience, to standing up for human rights, advancing gender equality, and defending the international rules and institutions that protect us all.”

Newly appointed British high commissioner Sarah MacIntosh said the visit by the Foreign Secretary and Defence Secretary “emphasised the importance of our landmark AUKUS partnership with Australia and the US”.

“AUKUS is one of the most strategically important partnerships in decades, supporting peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic, while also delivering jobs and economic growth in communities across all three nations,” Dame Sarah said.

Unlike Australia resisting calls from the US to drastically increase its defence spending as a share of GDP, Britain agreed to boost its defence and security spending to 5 per cent of GDP by 2035 in line with most other NATO countries.

This is compared with Australia’s projected target of spending 2.3 per cent of GDP on direct defence investment.

The Albanese government’s caution to appear as if it is bending to President Donald Trump’s calls on defence comes as the Prime Minister is still yet to lock in a meeting with the US leader.

However, the easing of restrictions on US beef imports – which government sources stressed was not linked to the desire to see Washington’s tariffs on Australian products revoked – was warmly welcomed by the Trump administration.

In a strategy similar to that of the Australian government, the UK has sought to play down the significance of the US review, led by Elbridge Colby, into the AUKUS deal that includes the sale of nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, claiming the review was understandable given the change in administration early this year.