US, Australia agree to strengthen cooperation in Indo-Pacific

Maryland [US], August 7 (ANI): The United States and Australia held ministerial consultations on Tuesday to strengthen the alliance and cooperation between the two countries in the Indo-Pacific region and globally.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin hosted Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister, Richard Marles in Annapolis, Maryland.
"The Secretaries and Ministers (principals) reaffirmed that the US-Australia Alliance is essential to promoting a prosperous and peaceful region. They expressed the importance of the history and values shared by the United States and Australia and renewed their commitment to support a stable and open international system that protects each nation's ability to make sovereign decisions free from coercion or threats of force," the joint statement read.

It's great to see my friend and Australian counterpart @RichardMarlesMP in Annapolis today. We held highly productive meetings at this year's AUSMIN along with @SecBlinken and Foreign Minister Wong – demonstrating once again the extraordinary strength of our #UnbreakableAlliance pic.twitter.com/BxKmXYuufQ

— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) August 6, 2024

The leaders welcomed actions by both governments that build upon the commitments made during the visit of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to the US and his meeting with President Joe Biden in October 2023 across the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, to build an "Innovation Alliance."
The major actions announced during the meeting between Biden and Albanese include Australia's endorsement of the US' Framework to Counter Foreign State Information Manipulation through a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
They also agreed to establish the Australia-US Landsat Next Partnership between Geoscience Australia and the US Geological Survey, enhancing cooperation on satellite imaging data collection and analysis capability to assist our nations, and the Indo-Pacific, with resources management, urban planning, climate change and disaster relief.
Australia's continued progression in joining the US Global Entry Program, streamlining entry to the United States and strengthening our robust people-to-people links.
They also announced a new four-year phase of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) - Australia Mekong Safeguards Program to support strengthened environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards for infrastructure development in the Mekong subregion.
US and Australia committed to conclude a space framework agreement to facilitate cooperation on civil space activities, including further cooperation on the US National Air and Space Agency's (NASA) Artemis program.
An inaugural Ministerial First Nations Dialogue, focused on advancing economic development, Indigenous rights and environmental stewardship with First Nations peoples in Australia and federally recognised tribes in the US, which builds on the US hosting of an Australian First Nations business leaders' delegation that enables knowledge-sharing on business development, the statement added.
The two nations signed an MoU by representatives of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and US Department of State (State) Diplomatic Security to establish exchanges in the areas of technical security, cyber security, and threat analysis.
They also agreed to co-host the Pacific Banking Forum, where the US and Australia committed to supporting the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat's Correspondent Banking Relationship Roadmap and other efforts to address de-risking in the Pacific.
US support for cultural preservation efforts in the Pacific comes through the Australian Museum's Pasifika Tauhi project.
The nations agreed for continued progress by the Australia-US Critical Minerals Taskforce (CMTF) to pursue secure and diverse critical mineral supply chains, increase investment in mining and processing projects in our respective countries, and enhance market transparency. (ANI)