Australia PM confident of AUKUS support under 'any future US administration'

21/9/2024 12:47

        Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Saturday that he is confident the AUKUS defence pact will be supported by any future U.S. administration, after a meeting with President Joe Biden that covered bilateral defence cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.
        
        Biden is set to hand over the presidency after a Nov. 5 election that will deliver the White House to his vice president, Kamala Harris, or Republican Donald Trump, who has vowed a confrontational approach with China and voiced skepticism about traditional U.S. alliances. The U.S. is Australia's closest security ally.
        
        AUKUS, formed in 2021 to address shared worries about China's growing power, is designed to allow Australia to acquire nuclear-powered attack submarines and other advanced weapons such as hypersonic missiles.
        
        U.S. officials said, Albanese is in the U.S for the Quad Leaders Summit, where the leaders are expected to speak about conflict between Beijing and its neighbors in the South China Sea who have repeatedly clashed over disputed territory.