Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop and Defence Minister Senator David Johnston today announced that they will travel to the United States to participate in the 2013 Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations (AUSMIN) in Washington on 20 November. AUSMIN will be hosted by United States Secretary of State John Kerry and United States Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel.
AUSMIN is the premier forum for strengthening bilateral cooperation on foreign policy, defence and strategic matters between Australia and the United States. Minister Bishop’s and Senator Johnston’s discussions with Secretary of State Kerry and Secretary of Defense Hagel will bring renewed focus to a relationship that continues to advance shared security interests in the Indo-Pacific region and globally.
“I look forward to our meeting in Washington as an opportunity to reaffirm the close and enduring ties between Australia and the United States,” Ms Bishop said. “Australia’s Alliance with the United States is the foundation of Australia’s defence, security, and strategic arrangements.”
“At AUSMIN, I look forward to discussing prospects for enhancing our regional defence engagement, including through the US force posture initiatives in northern Australia. We will explore opportunities for enhancing our close defence cooperation on capability and technology developments, including in new and emerging areas such as space,” said Senator Johnston.