Australia’s foreign minister says quad in Washington shows ‘ironclad’ commitment Reuters

By Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, meeting her Indian and Japanese counterparts in Washington, said the invitation to the Quad’s foreign ministers to attend the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump showed an “iron-clad commitment” to closing cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. .

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio is on track to be confirmed as Trump’s secretary of state on Monday, paving the way for a meeting of the Quad’s foreign ministers the following day, people familiar with the matter said.

The grouping of Australia, India, Japan and the US was formed out of a shared concern over China’s rising power.

“This is a testament to the shared commitment of all countries to the Quad, an iron-clad commitment at a time when close cooperation in the Indo-Pacific is so important,” Wong said at a foreign ministers’ reception in Washington on Sunday.

Wong said she would meet with Rubio and other members of the Trump administration, saying the US alliance was critical to Australia’s defense and economic prosperity.

Wong is expected to discuss the AUKUS defense technology partnership with the US and Britain.

Australia is “on track to increase defense spending,” she told reporters in Washington.

“Our focus is on how we continue to deliver on AUKUS, because we believe it’s very important to protect capacity, which is the way you can ensure peace,” she said.

Defense Secretary Richard Marles said in a radio interview on Monday that AUKUS will provide substantial funding to the US industrial base to accelerate production of the US Virginia class submarines.