Anthony Albanese has arrived in the United States for a long-awaited meeting with President Donald Trump, where they are expected to discuss the Aukus pact, an agreement that a respected Republican has called a “crucial deterrent” in the Indo-Pacific that “keeps [the Chinese president, Xi Jinping] “I wake up at night.”
Albanese arrived in Washington DC on Sunday evening 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 and will have a scheduled lunch afterwards, according to the White House.
Disembarking from his plane in heavy rain in Maryland, Albanese was greeted on the tarmac by Australia’s ambassador to the United States, Kevin Rudd, and other diplomatic officials. Albanese said it was “wonderful to be here,” stepping off the plane after nearly 24 hours in transit to a waiting motorcade that took him to Washington, DC.
Albanese and Trump were expected to discuss Aukus and defence, trade and tariffs, among other economic issues, and Australia’s potential to provide the United States with a guaranteed supply of critical minerals.
The Pentagon review of Aukus, which was signed off by Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden, remains ongoing, a War Department spokesperson told Guardian Australia last week.
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Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican who until recently chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he expected plans for a “strong and successful” Aukus to be high on the agenda for Trump and Albanese’s meeting, even as the Pentagon’s review of the partnership remained ongoing.
McCaul, who also previously served as chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, praised Aukus on the eve of Albanese’s visit.
“While serving as chair 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 have been told in my briefings, AUKUS is what keeps President Xi up at night.”
Labor government sources were confident that the Pentagon’s ongoing review of Aukus would approve the deal, allowing Australia to purchase three to five US-made nuclear-powered submarines in the 2030s. Locally-made SSN-Aukus submarines were later projected to begin entering service in the 2040s.
Albanese said in a written statement before leaving that he looked forward to “a positive and constructive meeting” and hoped to “consolidate and strengthen the relationship between Australia and the United States.”
Despite the government’s confidence that the Trump administration would stay true to the original Aukus plan, there were fears that Trump could try to achieve a better deal for the United States or make changes to the schedule.
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McCaul said he was encouraged by Albanese’s meeting with Trump and hoped the face-to-face “includes a discussion about how to make AUKUS strong and successful for years to come.”
Ahead of Albanese’s visit, Labor sources noted the shower of government money on American shipyards and an enthusiasm among congressional leaders that Defense Industry Minister Pat Conroy described as “evangelical” on Friday.
Australia has already contributed $1 billion to support American manufacturing, with another $1 billion due by the end of the year. While Albanese may be able to confirm the upcoming payment of that payment during his visit to Trump, Australian sources downplayed prospects of the Pentagon review becoming public during the trip to Washington.
Trump has not given any explicit endorsement or assurance to Aukus since taking office. When asked about Aukus in February, Trump responded: “What does that mean?”
Concerns about the pace and efficiency of current US shipbuilding have raised concerns about whether Australia will be able to purchase the Virginia-class submarines as planned. The US Navy estimates it needs to build Virginia-class submarines at a rate of about 2.33 per year to have enough ships to sell to Australia, but in July it was building them at a rate of about 1.13 per year.
