‘Great friend of Australia’: PM praises outgoing US President Joe Biden
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has paid tribute to the service of outgoing US President Joe Biden declaring him a “great friend of Australia” who championed the historic AUKUS partnership, fought against Russian aggression and campaigned for climate change action.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has paid tribute to the service of outgoing US President Joe Biden, declaring him a “great friend of Australia” who championed the historic AUKUS partnership, fought against Russian aggression and campaigned for climate change action.
The 81-year-old announced that he would withdraw from the US presidential race in a letter he posted to social media before later endorsing vice president Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party’s candidate.
Mr Albanese, who has been on leave in Far North Queensland, took time to recognise the global leader’s legacy, reflecting on the outcomes of several meetings at global summits in recent years.
The trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom, first announced in 2021, had served to strengthen the nation’s already strong bond as allies, Mr Albanese said.
“President Biden has a record of engagement in the Indo-Pacific and increasing the relationship through AUKUS which was of course finalised at the meeting that we held in San Diego at the beginning of last year,” the Prime Minister said.
“The AUKUS relationship is just one aspect of the closeness between Australia and the United States.
“It’s also been a period where President Biden has presided over an increase in the economic relationship between our two great nations but also the important co-operation that has taken place in climate change action.
“The (US’s) Inflation Reduction Act is no doubt the most significant piece of legislation to reduce emissions introduced anywhere in the world.”
Mr Albanese recalled a private dinner at the West Wing with the President in 2023 as a key moment in the pair’s relationship.
He first met Mr Biden while he was serving under former president Barack Obama.
“It was one of my first events as Prime Minister to travel to the Quad meeting that was held in Tokyo within days of my election in May of 2022,” he said.
“Since then we have had a number of meetings on the sidelines of international summits but also during my official visit to the United States last year where President Biden and (First Lady) Jill Biden were gracious hosts at an official state dinner as well as the four of us having dinner with my partner Jodie Haydon … in the West Wing.
“We also met with his entire cabinet just outside of the Oval Office and it was a very gracious reception that the President hosted myself in recognition of the important relationship between our two great nations.”
The US president should be praised for his role in stabilising the American economy following the global pandemic and international conflicts, Mr Albanese said.
“In President Biden (there is a) legacy of support for the international rule of law, support for international human rights, support for the people of Ukraine in their struggle against aggression from Russia with its illegal and immoral invasion,” he said.
“But also President Biden has presided over the recovery of the United States’ economy after the long legacy that Covid has left.
“He’s presided over an economy that’s seen jobs grow, wages increase and the transition proceed as the world moves toward net-zero.
“President Biden has been a great friend of Australia and I look forward to meeting him at the G20 and APEC summits that will be held later this year.”
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Originally published as ‘Great friend of Australia’: PM praises outgoing US President Joe Biden
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