US President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday toasted their shared stand on Israel, Ukraine and China, including peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, during a lavish state visit aimed at deepening their countries’ century-old alliance.
“The alliance between Australia and the United States is an anchor to peace and prosperity,” the 80-year-old president said during a day of pomp and ceremony at the White House.
In the evening Biden treated Albanese, 60, to a gala dinner in a giant marquee erected on the South Lawn, with guests from the worlds of entertainment, business and technology. The visit underscored the importance Washington places on longtime ally Australia as a cornerstone of its strategy against an increasingly assertive Beijing in the Asia-Pacific region.
Photo: EPA
“A great deal of the history of our world will be written in the Indo-Pacific in the coming years,” Biden said. “Australia and the United States must write that story together.”
At a joint press conference with Biden earlier, Albanese said the bond between the two countries was crucial in an “uncertain world.”
“The relationship between Australia and the United States has never been more important. And it has never been stronger than it is right now,” he said.
Photo: Bloomberg
During talks in the Oval Office, the leaders discussed progress on the so-called AUKUS deal between Australia, the UK and the US that would see Australia obtain nuclear-powered submarines. The trip also included announcements on technology and climate change, along with plans to boost Internet links and maritime infrastructure in Pacific island nations where China has been trying to expand its influence.
The two leaders also addressed the Israel-Hamas conflict and the war in Ukraine. Both countries are providing military aid to Kyiv and humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza, while the US is supplying weapons to Israel.
Biden said both nations were “standing with Israel against Hamas terrorism” and “standing with Ukraine against [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s tyranny.”
Albanese said “all Australians condemn the atrocities, terror and pitiless brutality of Hamas.”
China’s rise remains a long-term concern for the two allies, even as they both seek something of a reset with Beijing. Albanese is to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Beijing early next month, while Biden might meet Xi an APEC forum in San Francisco later the same month.
The two leaders also reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and opposition to unilateral changes in the “status quo.”
“We call for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues through dialogue without the threat or use of force or coercion,” they said in a joint statement following their meeting.
They also emphasized the importance of open communication and practical measures to “reduce the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculation” in the Indo-Pacific region, the statement said.
Expressing concern about China’s “excessive maritime claims that are inconsistent with international law,” the two leaders resolved to work with partners to uphold maritime security.
Biden said the United States was in “competition not conflict” with China, but took a tough tone on recent collisions between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the South China Sea.
“I want to be very clear. The United States defense commitment to the Philippines is ironclad,” he told the press conference.
Additional reporting by staff writer
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
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