Anthony Albanese says security ties with US as strong as ever ahead of Donald Trump meeting
Anthony Albanese has revealed details of his first catch-up with Donald Trump, and says the $368bn AUKUS nuclear submarine deal is already progressing despite an ongoing Pentagon review.
Anthony Albanese has declared Australia’s security alliance with the United States is as strong as it’s ever been amid growing expectations the $368bn AUKUS nuclear submarine deal is safe and Labor’s recognition of Palestine will not undermine relations with the Trump administration.
In an interview with The Australian while flying home to Sydney after an 11-day overseas trip to the US, Britain and United Arab Emirates, the Prime Minister revealed details of a positive first in-person catch-up with Donald Trump in New York last week ahead of their bilateral meeting at the White House on October 20.
Reflecting on his longest international trip since winning the 2022 election – which included stops in New York, London, Balmoral, Liverpool and Abu Dhabi for the United Nations General Assembly and meetings with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, King Charles and United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan – Mr Albanese rejected Coalition criticism of his British Labour Party conference speech in Liverpool and confirmed he would take his first holiday since January 5.
After recognising Palestinian statehood, touting Labor’s ambitious 2035 emissions reduction target, launching the commencement of the Australia-UAE trade deal, promoting the government’s social media ban and defending progressive politics against the threat of populist right-wing parties, Mr Albanese will now turn his mind to a high-stakes meeting with Mr Trump in Washington DC.
Ahead of parliament returning briefly for three days next week, Mr Albanese said the AUKUS nuclear submarine and defence deal was already progressing despite an ongoing Pentagon review. The AUKUS deal, according to various media outlets in recent weeks, is likely to proceed given the strategic importance of the pact in response to the expanding military threat of China in the Indo-Pacific region.
In addition to senior Australian Defence Force personnel embedding into British and US forces, Mr Albanese cited this year’s staging of the biggest ever Exercise Talisman Sabre as a further example of strength in the US-Australia alliance.
From Austal’s shipbuilding facilities in Alabama to the $12bn boost for upgrades at Henderson Defence Precinct in Western Australia, Mr Albanese said the security relationship was going from strength to strength. In addition to providing sovereign shipbuilding capability and continuous naval shipbuilding, the Henderson facility is viewed by US military commanders as strategically critical in supporting nuclear-powered submarines operating in the Indo-Pacific region from 2027.
There are also 150 Australian personnel based in Hawaii as part of the Indo-Pacific Command and senior naval officers attached with the US and British, including at Barrow-in-Furness.
Mr Albanese – who was feted by Joe Biden with a state visit and dinner in 2023 – said his first in-person meeting with Mr Trump last week “was warm and good”. Jodie Haydon, Mr Albanese’s fiancee, also spoke with Melania Trump after attending an earlier event hosted by the first lady in New York.
“He (Mr Trump) was very positive about me and Jodie. It was good with Melania, I hadn’t had discussions with her. Melania had a chat with Jodie, and Jodie had attended an event earlier that day that was convened by Melania. All of the indications are positive,” Mr Albanese, who made the point “no one has a lower tariff rate than us”, told The Australian.
The Labor leader, who has had four phone conversations with Mr Trump since the Republican billionaire won the US election in November last year, revealed that after one of their chats the US President helped dispatch Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to attend an investment summit hosted in February by Kevin Rudd, Australia’s ambassador in Washington.
“I said we would like serious representation, he did that, he delivered and sent (Scott Bessent),” he said.
As Mr Trump pushes back against elements inside his Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement who want him to withdraw from foreign conflicts and withhold overseas financial and military support, Mr Albanese said the US had a “critical role to play in the global economy and global security”.
“We can’t isolate ourselves. No nation can. Not even the largest, most powerful nation. It’s in its interest to be engaged in the world. We’ve encouraged their engagement in our region and it’s important. You look at our trading relationship, it is very important. They’re important investors.”
Asked about balancing international travel commitments with domestic political expectations, Mr Albanese said “it’s part of doing the job”.
The 62-year-old, who faced pressure in his first term over international travel, said “no matter who the prime minister is” they would be expected to attend summits, including ASEAN and APEC, which will be held in Malaysia and South Korea later this month.
After winning 94 seats at the May 3 election and decimating the Coalition, Mr Albanese made a personal decision to accept Sir Keir’s invitation to address the British Labour Party conference in Liverpool despite it being a hyper-partisan event. The Prime Minister said the conference allowed him to advocate strongly for AUKUS across Sir Keir’s cabinet.
Mr Albanese, who said he would cancel an overseas trip if domestic matters were deemed more important, said he was better equipped to deal with prime ministerial pressures in his second term.
The Prime Minister, who cites “experience” as key alongside learning every day and engaging and building relationships, confirmed he would take a long-scheduled week off before travelling to Washington DC.
“I work hard. I haven’t had a day off all year. I hit the road on January 5 and have been full-bore. There have been days where I haven’t had tonnes of stuff on but, you know, I’m on the phone, I’m doing stuff for prepping.”
Mr Albanese said meeting in-person with leaders such as Mr Carney, Sir Keir, French President Emmanuel Macron and “MBZ”, the UAE leader who is close to Mr Trump, was critical in ensuring Australia had a voice on the world stage.
As the US and other countries express interest in Australia vast deposits of critical minerals and rare earths, which support modern manufacturing of defence, health, clean energy, transport and telecommunications products, Mr Albanese said his focus was on “value-adding” and developing sovereign mining, refining and processing systems. That step-up would require support from partners including the US, Japan, South Korea and others.
While it remains unclear whether Mr Albanese will promise Mr Trump a higher defence spending total closer to the 3.5 per cent of GDP requested by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Australia’s critical minerals are expected to feature in high-level discussions with the Trump administration.
Mr Albanese said his government wants to “learn from some of the past with our resources … exporting them and watching someone else value-add and create jobs and then importing them back”.
“We want to, wherever it’s possible, create jobs and maximise commercial opportunities and benefit for Australia. The (Critical Minerals) Strategic Reserve we announced during the campaign … is about also making sure that that can play a role in avoiding market manipulation.”
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