Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The United States is of course our closest ally, our principal strategic partner and our largest two-way investment partner, and our alliance with the United States is a central pillar of our foreign policy. I'm honoured to take up President Biden's invitation of an official visit to Washington DC next week. It will be the ninth time President Biden and I have met since my election as Prime Minister. Our nations are united by our common values, our deep history and our shared vision. But this visit will of course be focused on building an alliance for the future. Progressing our AUKUS pact is critical to that, ensuring Australia plays our part in upholding the stability, security and prosperity of our region. The visit by Prime Minister Rabuka, from Fiji, was very much a part of that engagement, and it's important that this meeting take place before I attend the Pacific Islands Forum later this year.

We'll also be discussing our shared interests in climate action and clean energy. In May we announced the groundbreaking Climate, Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Transformation Compact, and there will be some announcements next week about the next steps. We're also working to promote Australian business, industry and innovation, and a range of Australian businesspeople will also travel for the official state dinner and for meetings that will take place in the United States next week.

At a time of global uncertainty, working with our global partners is vital. We live in an ever more interconnected world, and we need to engage, know who our friends are and engage with them in our common interests of promoting democratic values and promoting engagement in our region in a positive way. Whether it's about the economy, climate change, energy, resources or the battle against global inflation, being part of these conversations means that Australia gets to shape the solutions. We're a mid-sized power, so we do have influence, but we need to engage. Often the truth is that, for Australia, when we take a constructive and proactive approach we do punch above our weight—located where we are in the world, in the fastest-growing region of the world in human history. The United States sees that and values that. And we value our friends in the United States.

I look forward to having a seat at the table next week, and I very much look forward to the positive engagement with President Biden, Vice President Harris, Secretary Blinken, Secretary Austin and other significant people in the United States. I thank all those officials who've worked very hard to make a visit like this happen. It takes a lot of work by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and I thank our ambassador to Washington, Kevin Rudd, who's also worked very hard on this visit. We will have the opening of the new Australian embassy in the United States while I am there, and we'll also be progressing a range of economic announcements on how we benefit from this important partnership.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

on indulgence—We wish the Prime Minister safe travels. Obviously, parliament won't be able to sit next week as a result of this trip. There'll be one day inserted into the calendar in December, so we'll miss out on the opportunity for debate in the chamber, which is regrettable. I think it would also be in our country's best interest, Prime Minister, to go via Tel Aviv and provide support to the Israeli leadership. I know that Prime Minister Netanyahu hasn't had a chance to return your call, but it is important for us to be able to stand with Israel at this time, as other world leaders have done. That should be to priority, frankly, of any international travel at the moment so that we can seek to be part of an alliance to keep the pressure down on those who seek to have a wider conflict in the region. It would be appropriate, Prime Minister, and we would fully support that initiative.