Marise Payne and Linda Reynolds land in US for AUSMIN talks

The US and Australia will discuss a step up in Australian participation in US naval missions in the Indo-Pacific at high-level talks in Washington.

Marise Payne, left, and Linda Reynolds arrive in Washington ahead of AUSMIN 2020 wearing protective masks. Picture: Twitter

The US and Australia will discuss a step up in Australian participation in US naval missions in the Indo-Pacific at high-level talks in Washington this week, including “concrete co-operation” on freedom of navigation operations in the South China Sea.

US government officials have flagged a series of “ambitious” and “co-ordinated” defence initiatives will be up for discussion, with agreement possible on four to five separate defence co-operation issues.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defence Minister Linda Reynolds arrived in Washington on Monday (Australian time), ahead of AUSMIN talks with their US counterparts, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Mark Esper late on Tuesday night AEST.

A senior US official said the Trump administration was “delighted” with Australia’s recent statement to the United Nations rejecting disputed Chinese maritime claims in the South China Sea as illegal.

The official said the statement was not co-ordinated with the US, despite following the one by Mr Pompeo that declared China’s resource and territorial claims across most of the South China Sea to be “completely unlawful”.

“There was no US request, and we were absolutely delighted ... when Australia came out with its statement based on common sense and based on increasingly provocative actions by the Chinese,’’ the official said.

The US has previously sought Australian support for its freedom of navigation operations (FONOPS) in the South China Sea within 12 nautical miles of Chinese territorial claims that are inconsistent with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

However, Australia has been reluctant to do so, fearing retribution from Beijing.

The US official told The Australian that Secretaries Pompeo and Esper “will be looking for ways we can enhance and increase our concrete co-operation” with Australia on FONOPS.

“We (the US) do regular freedom of navigation operations,” the official said.

“There have been examples where Australia has supported those operations or worked alongside them, even if they haven’t done strictly defined (FONOPS) ... by going within 12 nautical miles of a feature or asserting a right of operation or free passage consistent with international law.

“So we will be looking to enhance that sort of co-operation.”

It’s unclear whether Mr Pompeo or Mr Esper will request Australian warships sail alongside US vessels within 12 miles of disputed Chinese features, or be content with Australian participation in the broader operations the US conducts in the region.

The US official said a recent joint exercise involving the Anzac Frigate HMAS Parramatta, which conducted exercises with US Navy ships in the South China Sea in April, was “a good example of where we would like to go with joint operations”.

Five Australian warships on the way to participate in US naval exercises off Hawaii were challenged in the South China Sea by the Chinese Navy during the last fortnight as they sailed close, but not within 12 nautical miles, of the disputed Spratly Islands.

The encounter was “professional”, and not unsafe, a US source with knowledge of the incident said.

Senior defence strategists have urged Prime Minister Scott Morrison to greenlight freedom of navigation operations by Australian warships in the South China Sea following the recent UN statement.

US ambassador to Australia AB Culvahouse applauded Australia’s “robust and ongoing leadership” in rejecting Beijing’s dis­puted claims, amid threats of retribution from Chinese state media.

Senators Payne and Reynolds will have separate bilateral meetings with their counterparts before a joint AUSMIN meeting with Mr Pompeo and Mr Esper.

Their decision to travel to Washington for the talks, despite a US offer to conduct them via secure video conference, means they will have to go into quarantine for a fortnight when they return to Australia.

The Trump administration saw the decision as evidence of Australia’s commitment to the bilateral relationship, and the importance of this year’s AUSMIN talks.

Mr Morrison defended sending the ministers abroad, adding he intended to go to Washington this year for the G7 summit.

“These are important opportunities for Australia. It would be extraordinary if we didn’t seek to attend these meetings,” he said in Sydney.

“Our alliance with the US is the bedrock of Australia’s defence strategy. So would it be highly irregular for us not to seek to take every opportunity for those meetings to be held face-to-face and I’m very pleased that they are proceeding on that basis.”

The talks come during unprecedented tension between the Trump administration and the Chinese government, with Mr Pompeo urging nations to stand up to China’s “tyranny” regardless of the economic costs.

Senators Payne and Reynolds have described this year’s AUSMIN talks as the most important yet.

Agreements are expected on a new regional health plan to tackle infectious diseases and another to combat disinformation by “malicious actors” including nation-states.

A new infrastructure-focused development program to support regional economic recovery is also expected, together with agreements to step up military co-operation and the development of defence technologies, and strengthen supply chains for essential goods.

Before they departed Australia, Senators Payne and Reynolds said the meeting was being held at a “pivotal moment”, with the coronavirus pandemic exacerbating the most difficult set of strategic challenges the Indo-Pacific has seen for generations.