United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (pictured) met with Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles at the Indo-Pacific Command headquarters in Hawaii. The two discussed ways to deepen the bilateral defense industrial cooperation, including through the AUKUS pact with the United Kingdom and Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance, which aims to increase Australia's guided weapons production capability.
Austin also met with Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara to discuss "breaking ground" in defense development cooperation and trilateral ties with South Korea, among other issues. "The US-Japan alliance is the cornerstone of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, and we're taking historic steps to deepen our defense relationship," Austin said.
