US hosts Australian defense, foreign ministers for 2+2 meeting

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - US Secretaries of State and Defense Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth hosted their Australian counterparts on Monday for bilateral talks that are widely expected to focus on China.

The meeting between Rubio, Hegseth and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defense Minister Richard Marles marks 40 years of Australia-United States Foreign Affairs and Defense Minister consultations.

Rubio lauded what he called the "incredibly strong alliance" between Washington and Canberra, saying Australia "is our only ally that has fought with us in every war" over the past 50 years.

"This is a very strong partnership. It's a strong alliance, and what we want to do is continue to build on it. We think we have a lot of momentum behind this alliance," he said. "We truly have no better friend."

The top US diplomat lauded a trilateral collective security group that also includes the UK, saying AUKUS "is full steam ahead," and referred to what he called a "landmark" agreement on critical minerals that was signed in October.

"To build our economies and to prosper as economies, we have to have critical mineral supplies and supply chains that are reliable and that are diverse, and not overly invested in one place where they can be used as leverage against us or our partners of the world," Rubio said.

While none of the officials specifically mentioned China, Rubio's comments appeared to be a reference to Beijing, which has pulled back on critical mineral export restrictions that sent shockwaves across the globe until they were eased following a bilateral meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of October.

Rubio is slated to meet UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper later Monday afternoon.