US defense secretary hosts Australian counterpart

pentagon — 

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth welcomed Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles to the Pentagon connected Friday, aft Australia made its archetypal $500 cardinal outgo to the United States nether the AUKUS atomic submarine woody involving Washington, Canberra and London.

“The cheque did clear,” Hegseth joked to Marles and reporters up of the defence ministers’ meeting.

Marles said the “strength of American leadership” successful the Indo-Pacific portion is “critically important” to Australia. He added that the AUKUS submarine woody besides represented an summation successful Australian defence spending.

"We truly recognize the value of gathering our capability, but successful paying our way,” Marles told Hegseth.

Marles was the archetypal overseas defence counterpart that Hegseth had hosted since his confirmation.

U.S. and Australian officials confirmed that Australia transferred the $500 cardinal aft a telephone betwixt Marles and Hegseth precocious past month.

AUKUS is simply a trilateral concern that Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. announced successful September 2021 to enactment a “free and unfastened Indo-Pacific” amid accrued Chinese aggression.

The archetypal inaugural nether AUKUS was aimed astatine strengthening the U.S. submarine concern basal truthful that Australia tin get nuclear-powered onslaught submarines for the Royal Australian Navy. It besides provides for the rotational basing of American and British atomic submarines successful Australia.