Australia's defence minister Marles to meet US, Japan counterparts
By Kirsty Needham
SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles will meet with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts at an Asian security forum in Singapore, the first trilateral talks since elections in Australia and the Trump Administration took office.
Marles will attend the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier security forum, from May 30-June 1, making his first foreign visit since the centre-left Labor government won an increased majority in national elections this month.
Marles will meet Japanese Defence Minister Gen Nakatani and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, his office said on Thursday.
The annual trilateral meeting was last held in November in Darwin, Australia, where the three countries agreed to increase joint military exercises, intelligence and surveillance cooperation.
Marles met Hegseth in February in Washington to discuss the AUKUS nuclear submarine partnership, under which Australia will make a $2 billion payment to the U.S. submarine industrial base this year.
U.S. President Donald Trump's Pentagon officials have urged Australia to lift defence spending to 3% of gross domestic product, although Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday his government would lift to 2.4% and invest in capability and relationships in the region.
Defence ministers, senior military and security officials and diplomats from around the world are expected to attend the summit.
Marles will speak on Saturday about proliferating risks in the region, his office said.
"The Government is committed to strengthening our global defence relationships, while deepening our diplomatic and defence partnerships in the Indo-Pacific," Marles said in a statement.
Australian Strategic Policy Institute senior analyst for defence, Euan Graham, said the primary challenge for Marles is "to convince Australia's security partners gathered in Singapore that the Australian Defence Force has enough capability to be credible in the near term, in case a regional crisis happens before AUKUS and other long-term investments can make a difference".
Under the AUKUS timeline, an Australian and British-built nuclear-powered submarine will not arrive until 2040, while the purchase of Virginia-class submarines from the United States in 2032 is under a cloud because of production delays.
Graham, previously based in Singapore for the summit's organiser, said Australia also needs to "do more to actively support extended nuclear deterrence by the United States".
Australia has rebutted criticism from China that AUKUS undermines nuclear non-proliferation, by emphasising the submarines will be conventionally armed.
"Conventional deterrence has to join up with nuclear deterrence to be credible," Graham said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Asian stocks up, dollar soft as trade uncertainty mounts
By Ankur Banerjee SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asian stocks inched higher on Wednesday and the dollar wobbled near six-week lows as traders braced for higher U.S. duties on steel and aluminium, the latest chapter in the trade war saga that has rattled the markets for much of the year. South Korea's stocks and its currency surged as liberal presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung's election victory raised hopes of swift economic stimulus, market reforms and easing policy uncertainty. The benchmark KOSPI jumped more than 2% to its highest since August 2024. That left the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan 0.6% higher. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.8%, while Taiwan stocks jumped 1.6% after artificial intelligence behemoth Nvidia boosted U.S. stocks overnight. [.N] Data on Wednesday showed U.S. job openings increased in April, but layoffs picked up, indicating a slowing labour market as tariffs impact the economic outlook. Investor attention has been on a possible call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping sometime this week as tensions between the world's top two economies simmer. Trump on Friday accused China of violating a Geneva agreement to roll back tariffs and trade restrictions. Beijing said it would safeguard its interests and that the accusation was groundless. Chinese stocks were little changed in early trading with the blue chip index up 0.09%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.27%. "Markets may be desensitized to trade headlines, but Trump-Xi talks remain in focus. A grand deal looks unlikely, yet any escalation could still spark a bout of risk aversion," said Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo in Singapore. Also in focus has been the pace of trade negotiations and the lack of significant progress. Wednesday is the deadline for U.S. trading partners to submit their proposals for deals that might help them avoid Trump's hefty "Liberation Day" tariffs from taking effect in five weeks. Trump signed an executive proclamation that puts into effect from 0401 GMT on Wednesday his surprise announcement last week that he was taking the tariffs on steel and aluminium imports that had been in place since March to 50% from 25%. "We believe that the steel & aluminium tariffs are an exemplar of other strategic tariffs that are coming and likely to 'stick'," said Thierry Wizman, global FX & rates strategist at Macquarie. "With that, there's still little impetus for a U.S. dollar rally to take hold." DOLLAR WEAKNESS The on-again-off-again tariffs from Trump have led to investors fleeing U.S. assets looking for safe havens, including gold and other currencies, this year as they expect trade uncertainties to take a toll on the global economy. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said the global economy is on course to slow from 3.3% last year to 2.9% in 2025 and 2026, trimming its estimates from March, mainly on the fallout from the Trump administration's trade war. The dollar on Wednesday was on the back foot, slipping 0.17% against the yen at 143.72 and 0.1% against the Swiss franc at 0.8227. The euro rose 0.15% to $1.1388. The dollar index, which measures the U.S. unit versus six other major currencies, was at 99.11, not far from the six-week low of 98.58 touched on Monday. The index is down 8.5% this year. In commodities, oil prices eased, weighed down by a loosening supply-demand balance following increasing OPEC+ output and lingering concerns over the global economic outlook due to tariff tensions. [O/R] Brent crude futures dipped 0.06% to $65.59 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $63.35 per barrel, down 0.09%. Gold rose 0.5% to $3,369.59 per ounce, taking its gains for the year to an eye-popping 28% on safe-haven flows. [GOL/]
Bloomberg
29 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
EngineAI Targets $1 Billion Valuation: Co-founder Ren
Chinese startup EngineAI is planning a new round of financing later this year, targeting a $1 billion valuation as it seeks to join the global race to develop humanoid robots. Speaking with Bloomberg TV's Annabelle Droulers, Co-founder Ren Guowen discussed the latest capabilities of EngineAI's humanoid robots, current production progress, fundraising plans, and the impact of US-China tensions. (Source: Bloomberg)
Bloomberg
29 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Rubio Eulogizes Tiananmen Protesters as Hong Kong Issues Warning
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised pro-democracy protesters who were killed in Beijing's bloody Tiananmen Square crackdown 36 years ago, carrying on Washington's criticism of China's human rights record as tariff disputes further test already frayed ties. 'Today we commemorate the bravery of the Chinese people who were killed as they tried to exercise their fundamental freedoms, as well as those who continue to suffer persecution as they seek accountability and justice for the events of June 4, 1989,' Rubio said in a statement on Tuesday.
