Sub-optimal
The US decision to review the AUKUS submarine agreement adds to pressure on the Albanese government as the prime minister prepares to meet Donald Trump in Canada.
Anthony Albanese has so far adopted a ‘less is more’ attitude to Donald Trump.
Unlike Canada’s Justin Trudeau — who rushed to Mar-a-Lago after Trump’s election victory, only to be publicly humiliated — Albanese has kept his distance. With Australia largely spared from the worst of Trump’s tariffs, the strategy seemed to be working.
But with Albanese set to meet Trump for the first time on the sidelines of the G7 in Canada over the coming days, the dynamics have shifted dramatically.
Last week, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth directly urged his Australian counterpart Richard Marles to increase the country's military expenditure to 3.5% of GDP “as soon as possible”. That's well above Australia's current 2.4% trajectory by 2033–34.
