Anthony Albanese has arrived in the US for a long-awaited meeting with President Donald Trump, where they are expected to discuss the Aukus pact – an agreement a respected Republican has called a “crucial deterrent” in the Indo-Pacific that “keeps [the Chinese president, Xi Jinping] up at night”.
Albanese arrived in Washington DC late on Sunday night local time (Monday afternoon AEDT) ahead of his meeting with Trump at the White House on Monday morning local time (Tuesday morning AEDT). The two men will meet in the Oval Office, followed by a scheduled lunch afterward, according to the White House.
Disembarking his jet into heavy rain in Maryland, Albanese was greeted on the tarmac by Australia’s ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, and other diplomatic officials. Albanese said it was “wonderful to be here”, stepping off the plane after nearly 24 hours in transit on to a waiting motorcade that ferried him into Washington DC.
Albanese and Trump were expected to discuss Aukus and defence, trade and tariffs among other economic issues, and the potential for Australia to furnish the US with a guaranteed supply of critical minerals.
The Pentagon review of Aukus – which was signed by Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden – remained ongoing, a Department of War spokesperson told Guardian Australia last week.
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Michael McCaul, a Republican from Texas who until recently chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he hoped plans for a “strong and successful” Aukus would be high on Trump and Albanese’s meeting agenda, even as a Pentagon review into the partnership remained ongoing.
McCaul, who also formerly served as chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security, spoke highly of Aukus on the eve of Albanese’s visit.
“While serving as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, I worked extensively to reform and strengthen AUKUS, which I believe serves as a critical deterrent to the CCP’s malign activities in the Indo-Pacific,” McCaul told Guardian Australia.
“As I’ve been told in my briefings, AUKUS is what keeps Chairman Xi up at night.”
Labor government sources were confident the ongoing Pentagon review of Aukus would rubber-stamp the agreement, which would permit Australia to buy between three and five American-made nuclear-powered submarines in the 2030s. Later, locally made SSN-Aukus submarines were projected to begin coming into service in the 2040s.
Albanese said in a written statement before he departed he was looking forward “to a positive and constructive meeting”, and he hoped to “consolidate and strengthen the Australia-United States relationship”.
Despite government confidence that Trump’s government would stay true to the original Aukus plan, there were fears Trump could seek to extract a better deal for America or make changes to the timeline.
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McCaul said he was encouraged by Albanese’s meeting with Trump, and hoped the face-to-face would “include a discussion on how to make AUKUS strong and successful for years to come”.
Ahead of Albanese’s visit, Labor sources noted the government’s showering of money on American shipyards, and an enthusiasm among congressional leaders that the defence industry minister, Pat Conroy, described as “evangelical” on Friday.
Australia has already contributed US$1bn to support American manufacturing, with another $1bn due by the end of the year. While it is possible that Albanese could confirm the next instalment of that payment during his visit with Trump, Australian sources downplayed prospects of the Pentagon review being released during the Washington trip.
Trump has given no explicit endorsement or guarantee of Aukus since coming to office. When asked about Aukus in February, Trump responded: “What does that mean?”
Concerns over the pace and efficiency of current US shipbuilding have raised worries over whether Australia will be able to purchase the Virginia-class submarines as scheduled. The US Navy estimates it needs to be building Virginia-class submarines at a rate of about 2.33 a year to have enough boats to sell any to Australia, but as of July was building them at a rate of about 1.13 a year.
