Speaking after talks with the Biden administration in Washington, the Australian defence minister, Peter Dutton, said the nation was a “proud democracy in our region” and “no amount of propaganda can dismiss the facts”. The Australian government also renewed its request to China to resume high-level talks – an offer the foreign affairs minister, Marise Payne, said “mature actors” would be prepared to take up.
Dutton and Payne joined their US counterparts for the annual dialogue known as Ausmin – the first since the Biden administration took office – but it was overshadowed by the fallout from the announcement of a new security pact among Australia, the US and the UK.
