The United Kingdom and Australia held their annual AUKMIN meeting in London to boost economic cooperation and recommit to a defense pact with the U.S. in the face of uncertainty over incoming U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.
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00:00Top officials from the United Kingdom and Australia have held an annual meeting to boost
00:05ties over increasing global threats.
00:07We are navigating the most complex strategic environment since the end of World War II.
00:14And the rules that protect our nations are under pressure, possibly more than ever before.
00:21So that's why we're working together to protect and uphold the rules.
00:26The two countries affirmed their support for Ukraine over growing threats from Russia and
00:31North Korea and recommitted to a defense pact with the U.S.
00:35That pact was signed by U.S. President Joe Biden in 2023 and would provide a fleet of
00:40nuclear-powered submarines to Australia to counter China.
00:44But there are concerns over incoming U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's commitment
00:49to the agreement.
00:50Both countries see this pact as vital to counter China's growing influence in the region.
00:56In the Indo-Pacific, we unsurprisingly focused a great deal of our discussions on the challenge
01:05of maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, the challenge of China increasingly
01:11active, increasingly assertive in the region, and the vital importance of maintaining both
01:18deterrence and freedom of navigation.
01:22The two countries also unveiled a series of new security initiatives and promised to
01:26boost economic cooperation.