Albanese touches down in US ahead of Trump testAndrew BrownAAPMon, 20 October 2025 12:31AM
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will aim to shore up US support for AUKUS and a potential tariff exemption ahead of his crucial meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House.
The prime minister will land in Washington on Monday afternoon (AEDT) before his meeting with the US president at the White House the following day.
While the two leaders briefly came face-to-face on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September, the meeting will be the first time the two leaders have held formal bilateral talks since Mr Trump’s re-election as president.
“I look forward to a positive and constructive meeting with President Trump at the White House,” Mr Albanese said in a statement.
“Our meeting is an important opportunity to consolidate the Australia-United States relationship.”
High on the agenda for the meeting will be the fate of the AUKUS security agreement, which would see Australia supplied with US nuclear submarines.
The US Defence Department is conducting a review of the more than $300 billion agreement to see whether the trilateral pact aligns with Mr Trump’s “America First agenda”.
Mr Albanese is also set to make the case for an exemption to tariffs imposed on Australian exports to the US.
While Australian goods have a 10 per cent baseline tariff applied, steel and aluminium products have a 50 per cent tariff applied to it.
Australian officials have been laying the ground work for a potential critical minerals deal with the US, which is hoped could be used as leverage for a tariff exemption.
Resources Minister Madeleine King and Industry Minister Tim Ayres are set to join parts of the prime minister’s Washington trip, which is expected to focus on the critical minerals deal.
Education Minister Jason Clare said the prime minister’s visit would not involve sucking up to the US president in an attempt to get a favourable deal for Australia.
“It’s not about that. It’s about having a mature, professional relationship, working on areas where you can agree,” he told Sky News.
“There is so much where Australia and American can work together.
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