Albanese, Trump discuss critical minerals, trade and security in phone call
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The news: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Thursday night in what the prime minister in a social media post described as a “warm and constructive” conversation that canvassed trade, critical minerals and shared security interests.
The context: It was the fourth call between the leaders since Trump’s re-election, and comes ahead of a potential in-person meeting during the United Nations General Assembly in New York later this month.
It also follows criticism of Albanese for not yet meeting Trump in person, with opponents claiming this could hurt Australia’s ties with the US, especially amid tensions over Trump’s tariffs on Australian products and the US Department of Defence’s review of the AUKUS submarine pact.
A planned meeting in June at the G7 summit was cancelled when Trump left early due to a Middle East crisis. A meeting may occur during the UN meeting, but none has been confirmed.
What they said: “We discussed our trade and economic relationship as well as areas for growth including critical minerals,” Albanese said in the post. “We also discussed shared US-Australia security interests.”
According to a readout from Albanese’s office, the leaders talked about “economic co-operation and opportunities to work together on trade and critical minerals in the interests of both nations”, as well as “the strength of our relationship and the importance of our shared security interests”.
The official summary made no mention of the AUKUS submarine agreement or recent tensions over tariffs.
The sources: Anthony Albanese , Prime Minister office readout, The Sydney Morning Herald
