Blinken: US-Australia Partnership Has Never Been Stronger or More Important

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The partnership between the US and Australia has neither been stronger nor more important than it is right now, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during remarks alongside Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne in Washington, DC on Wednesday.

"If we look at what the United States and Australia are doing together bilaterally, regionally, globally, this partnership has never been stronger, it’s never been more important, I think, to the wellbeing of our people", Blinken said

Later in the day, US President Joe Biden is set to announce a new working group with the UK and Australia to deliver Canberra their first nuclear submarine.

The group, which will be known by the AUUKUS acronym, will also share information about artificial intelligence, cyber, underwater systems, long-range strike capabilities, and other advanced defence technologies.

Both Payne and Blinken noted the significance of the two meetings near the 70th anniversary of the signing of the ANZUS treaty between the US, Australia, and for some time New Zealand, which advanced defence cooperation and communication between the nations in the Indo-Pacific region.