Albanese holding firm on US push for 3 per cent defence spending ahead of meeting with President Trump
Sky News Sunday Agenda understands Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will not bow to US pressure to raise Australia's defence spending to three per cent of GDP.
The move comes despite renewed calls from Washington and an upcoming high stakes meeting with US President Donald Trump.
Instead, sources have said that Mr Albanese will stick with Labor's existing policy of increasing defence funding to 2.33 per cent of GDP by 2033.
The government has left open the possibility of spending more than that, but maintains that additional funding will be based on strategic necessity, not pressure from the US.
Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth met with Defence Minister Richard Marles at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore last week to discuss defence spending.
'Ultimately a strong, resolute and capable network of allies and partners is our key strategic advantage,' Mr Hegseth said in his keynote speech.
'China envies what we have together … but it's up to all of us to ensure that we live up to that potential by investing.'
In response, Mr Marles appeared open to increasing defence spending, ahead of Mr Albanese and President Trump's first meeting.
'Clearly we have increased defence spending significantly, and that is acknowledged,' Mr Marles said in his own address.
'But we want to be making sure we are calibrating our defence spending to the strategic moment that we need to meet, so we are up for the conversation.
'The American position has been clear and its understandable, and that's a conversation that we will continue to have with the US.'
However, Sky News Sunday Agenda understands Mr Albanese has no intention of shifting Labor's position on defence spending.
Under the government's projections, defence spending is forecast to reach 2.33 per cent of GDP by 2033–34, up from about 2.05 per cent in 2025-26.
Mr Albanese lashed out on Thursday at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) after it published a report criticising the government's funding trajectory.
'Seriously, they need to, I think, have a look at themselves as well and the way that they conduct themselves in debates,' Mr Albanese told ABC Radio.
'We've had a Defence Strategic Review. We've got considerable additional investment going into defence – $10 billion."
ASPI Executive Director Justin Bassi defended the report, saying the government was failing to meet the urgency of the global threat landscape.
'ASPI was set up to deliver the hard truths to the government of the day,' Mr Bassi told Sky News.
'Unfortunately the world has these threats that do impact Australia and to counter these threats we need to, unfortunately, spend more money in the area."
Mr Albanese's highly-anticipated meeting with US President Donald Trump appears likely to occur at the G7 Summit in Kananaskis from June 15 to 17, 2025.
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Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, had approached him about the switch and would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." Senator Cox was accused of bullying Greens staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "I made that (decision) based on some deep reflection," she said. 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The defection represents a further setback for the Greens after losing three seats at the federal election, with Senator Cox only informing party leader Larissa Waters about an hour prior to the announcement. The Yamatji-Noongar woman was elected to the upper house in 2021 to fill a Greens vacancy and had been the party's Indigenous affairs spokesperson. Despite having last year suggested the Albanese government was "not interested" in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, Senator Cox said she felt her values and priorities were better aligned with Labor than the Greens. "I've worked hard to make Australia fairer and much more reconciled, but recently, I've lost some confidence in the capacity for the Greens to assist me in being able to progress this," she told reporters. "I feel reassured with my experience, my skills and my knowledge, I can continue to collaborate and build on the existing relationships with an already amazing team of Labor MPs across the country." Senator Waters said the party was disappointed but wished Senator Cox well. "Senator Cox has said that her values align with the Labor party. This is the same Labor party who this week approved the climate wrecking North West Shelf gas project, which UNESCO advises will destroy significant First Nations heritage and ancient rock art," she said in a statement. "Senator Cox would have had more chance of effecting change by continuing to work with the Greens in the sole balance of power." Senator Cox, who was a member of the Labor Party before joining the Greens, will be formally admitted into Labor on Tuesday. She was not required to run in this year's federal election as she was elected for a six-year term in 2022. Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, had approached him about the switch and would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." Senator Cox was accused of bullying Greens staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "I made that (decision) based on some deep reflection," she said. "It was one that I considered both at a professional level, but also at a personal level. So this wasn't a decision that I did on the hop or based on emotion." Pressed on her previous opposition to the project, Senator Cox said she did not want to comment on the issue as the extension was still being provisionally approved. Senator Cox last year accused the Albanese government of being complicit in "war crimes" carried out by Israel in Gaza. Labor still requires the support of either the Greens or the coalition to pass legislation despite gaining a 29th senator. Labor has extended its parliamentary dominance even further following a Greens senator's shock defection. Dorinda Cox announced her decision on Monday while standing alongside Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at a press conference in Perth. The defection represents a further setback for the Greens after losing three seats at the federal election, with Senator Cox only informing party leader Larissa Waters about an hour prior to the announcement. The Yamatji-Noongar woman was elected to the upper house in 2021 to fill a Greens vacancy and had been the party's Indigenous affairs spokesperson. Despite having last year suggested the Albanese government was "not interested" in closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, Senator Cox said she felt her values and priorities were better aligned with Labor than the Greens. "I've worked hard to make Australia fairer and much more reconciled, but recently, I've lost some confidence in the capacity for the Greens to assist me in being able to progress this," she told reporters. "I feel reassured with my experience, my skills and my knowledge, I can continue to collaborate and build on the existing relationships with an already amazing team of Labor MPs across the country." Senator Waters said the party was disappointed but wished Senator Cox well. "Senator Cox has said that her values align with the Labor party. This is the same Labor party who this week approved the climate wrecking North West Shelf gas project, which UNESCO advises will destroy significant First Nations heritage and ancient rock art," she said in a statement. "Senator Cox would have had more chance of effecting change by continuing to work with the Greens in the sole balance of power." Senator Cox, who was a member of the Labor Party before joining the Greens, will be formally admitted into Labor on Tuesday. She was not required to run in this year's federal election as she was elected for a six-year term in 2022. Mr Albanese said Senator Cox, the first Indigenous woman to represent WA in the upper house, had approached him about the switch and would be a welcome addition to the government benches. "She wants to be part of a team that's delivering progress for this country by being a part of a government that can make decisions, to make a difference," he said. "Dorinda Cox is someone who's a former police officer. She's someone who has a lot to offer in terms of policy development." Senator Cox was accused of bullying Greens staffers in 2024, with as many as 20 employees leaving in three years and complaints made to parliament's workplace support service. Mr Albanese said the allegations had been examined. "They were all dealt with in Senator Cox's case and dealt with appropriately," he said. Senator Cox said improvements for Indigenous people would be more achievable within the government than from the crossbench. "I made that (decision) based on some deep reflection," she said. "It was one that I considered both at a professional level, but also at a personal level. So this wasn't a decision that I did on the hop or based on emotion." Pressed on her previous opposition to the project, Senator Cox said she did not want to comment on the issue as the extension was still being provisionally approved. Senator Cox last year accused the Albanese government of being complicit in "war crimes" carried out by Israel in Gaza. Labor still requires the support of either the Greens or the coalition to pass legislation despite gaining a 29th senator.
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Ukraine's domestic intelligence service, the SBU, acknowledged it carried out the attack, codenamed "Operation Spider's Web", planned for more than a year-and-a-half. The intelligence official said the operation involved hiding explosive-laden drones inside the roofs of wooden sheds and loading them onto trucks that were driven to the perimeter of the air bases. A total of 41 Russian warplanes were hit, the official said. The SBU estimated the damage at $US7 billion ($A11 billion) and said Russia had lost 34 per cent of its strategic cruise missile carriers at its main airfields. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed delight at the "absolutely brilliant outcome," and noted 117 drones had been used in the attack. "And an outcome produced by Ukraine independently," he wrote. "This is our longest-range operation." Russia's Defence Ministry acknowledged that Ukraine launched drone strikes against Russian military airfields across five regions on Sunday. Air attacks were repelled in all but two regions - Murmansk in the far north and Irkutsk in Siberia - where "the launch of FPV drones from an area in close proximity to airfields resulted in several aircraft catching fire". Russia launched 472 drones at Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's air force said, the highest nightly total of the war. Russia also launched seven missiles. Russia reported new drone attacks, listing 53 attacks intercepted in a period of less than two hours, including 34 over the border Kursk region. Russia said it had advanced deeper into the Sumy region of Ukraine, and open source pro-Ukrainian maps showed Russia took 450sq/km of Ukrainian land in May, its fastest monthly advance in at least six months. with DPA Russian and Ukrainian officials are holding their second round of direct peace talks since 2022 with no sign they are any closer to an agreement, one day after Kyiv struck some of Moscow's nuclear-capable bombers. The two sides are expected to discuss their respective ideas for what a full ceasefire and a longer term path to peace should look like amid stark disagreements and pressure from President Donald Trump, who has warned the US could abandon its role as a mediator if there's no progress. The Russian and Ukrainian delegations arrived at Istanbul's sumptuous Ciragan Palace by the Bosphorus, along with a senior Turkish official. Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Moscow's delegation, said Russia had received Ukraine's draft memorandum for a peace accord ahead of the talks. There was no word on whether Kyiv had received Russia's draft. Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov is heading the Ukrainian delegation. Their last round of talks in Istanbul on May 16 yielded the biggest prisoner swap of the war with each side freeing 1000 prisoners, but no sign of peace - or even a ceasefire as both sides merely stated their opening negotiating positions. Monday's meeting comes after Ukraine and Russia ramped up the war with one of the biggest drone battles of the conflict, a Russian highway bridge blown up over a passenger train and an attack on nuclear-capable bombers deep in Siberia. At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge in Russia's Bryansk region, neighbouring Ukraine, was blown up over a passenger train heading to Moscow with 388 people on board. No one has claimed responsibility. Ukraine attacked Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers at a military base deep in Siberia on Sunday, a Ukrainian intelligence official said, the first such attack so far from the front lines more than 4300km away. Ukraine's domestic intelligence service, the SBU, acknowledged it carried out the attack, codenamed "Operation Spider's Web", planned for more than a year-and-a-half. The intelligence official said the operation involved hiding explosive-laden drones inside the roofs of wooden sheds and loading them onto trucks that were driven to the perimeter of the air bases. A total of 41 Russian warplanes were hit, the official said. The SBU estimated the damage at $US7 billion ($A11 billion) and said Russia had lost 34 per cent of its strategic cruise missile carriers at its main airfields. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed delight at the "absolutely brilliant outcome," and noted 117 drones had been used in the attack. "And an outcome produced by Ukraine independently," he wrote. "This is our longest-range operation." Russia's Defence Ministry acknowledged that Ukraine launched drone strikes against Russian military airfields across five regions on Sunday. Air attacks were repelled in all but two regions - Murmansk in the far north and Irkutsk in Siberia - where "the launch of FPV drones from an area in close proximity to airfields resulted in several aircraft catching fire". Russia launched 472 drones at Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's air force said, the highest nightly total of the war. Russia also launched seven missiles. Russia reported new drone attacks, listing 53 attacks intercepted in a period of less than two hours, including 34 over the border Kursk region. Russia said it had advanced deeper into the Sumy region of Ukraine, and open source pro-Ukrainian maps showed Russia took 450sq/km of Ukrainian land in May, its fastest monthly advance in at least six months. with DPA Russian and Ukrainian officials are holding their second round of direct peace talks since 2022 with no sign they are any closer to an agreement, one day after Kyiv struck some of Moscow's nuclear-capable bombers. The two sides are expected to discuss their respective ideas for what a full ceasefire and a longer term path to peace should look like amid stark disagreements and pressure from President Donald Trump, who has warned the US could abandon its role as a mediator if there's no progress. The Russian and Ukrainian delegations arrived at Istanbul's sumptuous Ciragan Palace by the Bosphorus, along with a senior Turkish official. Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Moscow's delegation, said Russia had received Ukraine's draft memorandum for a peace accord ahead of the talks. There was no word on whether Kyiv had received Russia's draft. Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov is heading the Ukrainian delegation. Their last round of talks in Istanbul on May 16 yielded the biggest prisoner swap of the war with each side freeing 1000 prisoners, but no sign of peace - or even a ceasefire as both sides merely stated their opening negotiating positions. Monday's meeting comes after Ukraine and Russia ramped up the war with one of the biggest drone battles of the conflict, a Russian highway bridge blown up over a passenger train and an attack on nuclear-capable bombers deep in Siberia. At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge in Russia's Bryansk region, neighbouring Ukraine, was blown up over a passenger train heading to Moscow with 388 people on board. No one has claimed responsibility. Ukraine attacked Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers at a military base deep in Siberia on Sunday, a Ukrainian intelligence official said, the first such attack so far from the front lines more than 4300km away. Ukraine's domestic intelligence service, the SBU, acknowledged it carried out the attack, codenamed "Operation Spider's Web", planned for more than a year-and-a-half. The intelligence official said the operation involved hiding explosive-laden drones inside the roofs of wooden sheds and loading them onto trucks that were driven to the perimeter of the air bases. A total of 41 Russian warplanes were hit, the official said. The SBU estimated the damage at $US7 billion ($A11 billion) and said Russia had lost 34 per cent of its strategic cruise missile carriers at its main airfields. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed delight at the "absolutely brilliant outcome," and noted 117 drones had been used in the attack. "And an outcome produced by Ukraine independently," he wrote. "This is our longest-range operation." Russia's Defence Ministry acknowledged that Ukraine launched drone strikes against Russian military airfields across five regions on Sunday. Air attacks were repelled in all but two regions - Murmansk in the far north and Irkutsk in Siberia - where "the launch of FPV drones from an area in close proximity to airfields resulted in several aircraft catching fire". Russia launched 472 drones at Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's air force said, the highest nightly total of the war. Russia also launched seven missiles. Russia reported new drone attacks, listing 53 attacks intercepted in a period of less than two hours, including 34 over the border Kursk region. Russia said it had advanced deeper into the Sumy region of Ukraine, and open source pro-Ukrainian maps showed Russia took 450sq/km of Ukrainian land in May, its fastest monthly advance in at least six months. with DPA Russian and Ukrainian officials are holding their second round of direct peace talks since 2022 with no sign they are any closer to an agreement, one day after Kyiv struck some of Moscow's nuclear-capable bombers. The two sides are expected to discuss their respective ideas for what a full ceasefire and a longer term path to peace should look like amid stark disagreements and pressure from President Donald Trump, who has warned the US could abandon its role as a mediator if there's no progress. The Russian and Ukrainian delegations arrived at Istanbul's sumptuous Ciragan Palace by the Bosphorus, along with a senior Turkish official. Vladimir Medinsky, the head of Moscow's delegation, said Russia had received Ukraine's draft memorandum for a peace accord ahead of the talks. There was no word on whether Kyiv had received Russia's draft. Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov is heading the Ukrainian delegation. Their last round of talks in Istanbul on May 16 yielded the biggest prisoner swap of the war with each side freeing 1000 prisoners, but no sign of peace - or even a ceasefire as both sides merely stated their opening negotiating positions. Monday's meeting comes after Ukraine and Russia ramped up the war with one of the biggest drone battles of the conflict, a Russian highway bridge blown up over a passenger train and an attack on nuclear-capable bombers deep in Siberia. At least seven people were killed and 69 injured when a highway bridge in Russia's Bryansk region, neighbouring Ukraine, was blown up over a passenger train heading to Moscow with 388 people on board. No one has claimed responsibility. Ukraine attacked Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers at a military base deep in Siberia on Sunday, a Ukrainian intelligence official said, the first such attack so far from the front lines more than 4300km away. Ukraine's domestic intelligence service, the SBU, acknowledged it carried out the attack, codenamed "Operation Spider's Web", planned for more than a year-and-a-half. The intelligence official said the operation involved hiding explosive-laden drones inside the roofs of wooden sheds and loading them onto trucks that were driven to the perimeter of the air bases. A total of 41 Russian warplanes were hit, the official said. The SBU estimated the damage at $US7 billion ($A11 billion) and said Russia had lost 34 per cent of its strategic cruise missile carriers at its main airfields. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed delight at the "absolutely brilliant outcome," and noted 117 drones had been used in the attack. "And an outcome produced by Ukraine independently," he wrote. "This is our longest-range operation." Russia's Defence Ministry acknowledged that Ukraine launched drone strikes against Russian military airfields across five regions on Sunday. Air attacks were repelled in all but two regions - Murmansk in the far north and Irkutsk in Siberia - where "the launch of FPV drones from an area in close proximity to airfields resulted in several aircraft catching fire". Russia launched 472 drones at Ukraine overnight, Ukraine's air force said, the highest nightly total of the war. Russia also launched seven missiles. Russia reported new drone attacks, listing 53 attacks intercepted in a period of less than two hours, including 34 over the border Kursk region. Russia said it had advanced deeper into the Sumy region of Ukraine, and open source pro-Ukrainian maps showed Russia took 450sq/km of Ukrainian land in May, its fastest monthly advance in at least six months. with DPA
