ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Thanks for joining us. This afternoon I have had two bilateral meetings. My first face-to-face meeting with the President of the Republic of Korea, President Lee. Our first in person meeting after we had a very warm conversation on Thursday. I congratulated him on his election. And he and I, I'm sure, will develop a very strong relationship. The Republic of Korea are important economic partners of Australia. We have a significant economic relationship. We're a reliable supplier of energy to Korea and Korean investment through major companies in Australia, including the potential for green hydrogen that he spoke about as well, as well as, of course, investment in our defence and security. And so, we're important defence partners, we're important economic partners, and I look forward to further developments in the relationship. I will visit APEC later this year, where President Lee will host the meeting. This will come at an important time, particularly given APEC's focus on economic relationships and trade.
I also had a meeting with the NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte. I have met the Secretary General many times in his former capacity as Prime Minister of the Netherlands. Australia, of course, is not a member of NATO, but we do participate. I expect that the Deputy Prime Minister, Richard Marles, will attend the NATO summit. On the sidelines of the NATO summit will be the IP4 that involves Korea, Australia, Japan and New Zealand as well, and that will take place in a bit over a week. We spoke, in particular, about the security relationship in Europe and in particular about the ongoing impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I reiterated Australia's support for the people of Ukraine as standing up for not just their national sovereignty, but the international Rule of Law. Australia, of course, has committed something in the order of $1.5 billion to provide support for the Ukrainian struggle, which we regard as being very important. A democratic nation defending its sovereignty, but also standing up against – or in favour of – the international Rule of Law. And I reiterated a statement that I've made before – that Australia, should a peaceful resolution be found, would be willing to consider any invitation to participate as a member of the Coalition of the Willing that has been convened by President Macron and Prime Minister Starmer. Happy to take some questions.
JOURNALIST: Just sort of events this morning and leading to your meeting with Trump tomorrow. Mark Carney didn't get very far in terms of his trade discussions with Trump, and they agreed to keep talking. I just wonder, in terms of tempering expectations, is it unreasonable to expect you'll get a concrete outcome tomorrow? And this will take some time, this negotiation on trade between Australia and Trump?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that was what occurred last time with Australia and tariffs. And I don't think it would be reasonable to expect that you would have a complete change and a complete resolution of the issues which are there. When I first raised with President Trump the issue of tariffs, of course, he said he would give it great consideration. I would expect that that will continue and that we'll continue to put forward our case as we have in all of the discussions that I've had with President Trump and on – it shouldn't be regarded either that it's just leader to leader. There have been extensive discussions between Australian officials and the United States’ officials going forward. But we'll continue to engage constructively. We'll continue to point out that the United States enjoys a trade surplus with Australia of around about 2 to 1. We'll continue to point out that when it comes to steel, for example, there are, for Bluescope, around about four and a half thousand employees in the United States – contributing to the United States economy. And that's why we believe very firmly that it is in the United States’ interests, as well as in Australia's interests, for these tariffs to not be in place and that for there to be a continuation of the free and fair trade that’s a basis of the Australia-US Free Trade Agreement.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, in May you said that you had extended an invite to Mr. Trump to come to Australia. I was just wondering if you've heard back from that? And is that something you plan on raising with him tomorrow? And following tomorrow's meeting, when do you foresee that you'll likely meet him next?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we will no doubt discuss this tomorrow, and I won't pre-empt that, but the President of the United States would always be a welcome guest in Australia.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, the President and Sir Keir Starmer have just had a joint press conference in which Sir Keir Starmer said both countries were committed to AUKUS and the US President didn’t correct him and said that they were great friends and allies. That must give you some heart going into that meeting.
PRIME MINISTER: It was very positive, and I have seen the comments that were made. And of course it is in Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom's interest that AUKUS not just proceed in terms of Pillar I, but Pillar II as well. There are great advantages that we have. The sum of one, plus one, plus one sometimes equals more than three. And it certainly does that in this case. The advantage for the United States, of course, is getting access to the upgrade and facilities that we'll be putting in place at Henderson, for example, just one advantage. Which will mean that American subs can stay in the water for longer and that their maintenance is much more efficient and their capacity to be in the Indian Ocean and in the region around Australia will be much greater as well. The cooperation that's occurring across the three countries, where you have 120 Australians currently in Hawaii assisting with the maintenance of the US Navy. You have hundreds of Australians in both the United States and at Barrow in the United Kingdom picking up skills, engaging with each other as well, has the capacity to lift up the capability of all three countries. And that is why we support AUKUS. And that's why I'm confident that all three nations will continue to provide support for it.
JOURNALIST: How important is Keir Starmer, then, to keeping the AUKUS deal together in your view? Has he been advocating hard for it?
PRIME MINISTER: Keir Starmer's a big supporter of AUKUS and we have a very good relationship. I have a good relationship with Keir Starmer. We talk pretty regularly, and I think that, having visited Barrow, I've seen firsthand the facilities which are there, and we welcome that. Of course, the SSN AUKUS, the subs that we will be manufacturing in Adelaide and in the UK will be the same as well. And one of the benefits of AUKUS is improvements in interoperability. That improves the efficiency of our defence forces, which is why it's so important.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, there are many Australians still stuck in the Middle East, anxious to be evacuated. Do you have any update on how plans are progressing there or if there’s a timeline to bring them home?
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah. Penny Wong, I know, has visited the Crisis Centre that we've established to coordinate the response. We're very conscious of this, but at the moment, the airspace – my understanding unless something's happened in real time in the last hour – is still closed. Now, that presents challenges. So, we want to make sure that people are looked after, but they need to be looked after safely as well. And so, the last advice that I had was stay in place provisions were still the advice. And I would just encourage Australians to – Australians either there or Australians who are concerned about family or friends – to keep up to date with the Australian Government's advice.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, there's been reports that an Australian writer has been held for 12 hours by immigration officials in the US and then deported over his writing about Palestinian protests. Was wondering, does that kind of bring up concerns for you?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have assisted this individual. Because of privacy concerns, I'm not in a position to go into any further detail than that, but Australia will always provide support for Australians around the world. That's just something that we do.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Donald Trump today said he was a tariff person, and the deal that the UK signed today kept – more or less – keeps 10 per cent tariffs in place. Does that mean, do you consider it highly unlikely that Australia will be able to get the US to move on at least the 10 per cent tariffs?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the United States, of course, have a clear position that they've put forward, and President Trump's statements are really a restatement of something they've put forward. Australia will continue to advocate for free and fair trade. We think that is in the interests of individual states – as in individual nations – but it's also in the interest of the global economy.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, would you invite Vladimir Putin to come to Australia at any stage? And if not, is it appropriate that he attends the G8 next year in France?
PRIME MINISTER: No, we wouldn't.
JOURNALIST: The Trump meeting is one of the final things on President Trump's agenda before he rushes off. Are you concerned at all that you'll get your whole, full time slot with him?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh, look, I look forward to the meeting and I look forward to it taking place.
JOURNALIST: PM, if I could just ask – the US and UK have done a deal on steel and aluminium quotas, so that a certain amount of UK steel would be exempt from tariffs, basically, as long as there are assurances about the supply chains within the UK and what have you. Is that the sort of deal that you would potentially look at doing with the US, whereby at least some of the steel and aluminium going into the country could be exempt from these US tariffs?
PRIME MINISTER: The UK deal has other provisions with it as well, including provisions that are different in terms of Australia. Australia, as an island continent, for example, we are particularly careful about our biosecurity laws. Particularly careful, for good reason. We have a pristine natural environment that is a huge advantage for us. And so, when it comes to agriculture we will be very careful that we ensure that that continues to occur. But look, we'll engage in good faith on these issues. Australia's exports to the United States are under 5 per cent. That compares with a much greater figure, for example, that the President Lee of Korea just indicated as well. We think that the products that we export are invaluable for the United States. For example, a range of our steel is Colourbond roofs that simply can't be just manufactured in a short period of time to be replaced, that market. All it means is that American consumers are paying more for it. We don't see that that is in the interest of either the United States or Australia.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, you just met with Mark Rutte, who has called on NATO nations to dramatically lift their defence spending. He set a target of about 5 per cent, which includes some different categories. But I'm wondering in your meeting if he offered any reflections on Australia's level of defence spending or any advice for us in this very difficult strategic environment?
PRIME MINISTER: No, no, he didn't. But he'd be conscious of the fact that we have increased our defence spending by $57 billion over the next 10 years and by over $10 billion over the Forward Estimates.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Iran has just launched a new round of missiles. Israel appears to have struck an Iranian media outlet. A woman was on air at the time, and it appears had to run out of the live broadcast. Do you have faith that the G7 meeting can come up with something to try and stop this deadly destruction?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we are deeply concerned, and we have urged all parties to prioritise dialogue and diplomacy. The safety of Australians is, of course, our priority at the moment. And I reiterate that our advice is do not travel to Israel and Iran. We want to see peace and security in the region, and we want to see a de-escalation.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, have you prepped differently for this – what looms is one of the most important meetings, your Prime Ministership with President Trump tomorrow? Have you sought advice from people who know him or have worked with him before, people like Greg Norman, who you've met recently, Joe Hockey and others? What's been your approach in preparation to this meeting?
PRIME MINISTER: I always prep seriously for meetings where I'm representing Australia. I've just been through a test. It's called a federal election. 37 days, some days three press conferences a day, engaging in a way – I don't just talk to friendly media. I talk to everyone and participate across the board. And I, of course, have engaged with Ambassador Rudd as one, for example, who has, I think, an extraordinary capacity in terms of his skills and knowledge of the United States system. I've engaged with others as well across the political spectrum, and that is something that I do as well as engaging with – yes, I've engaged with people like Greg Norman. I was in contact with him in the last week as well. And I've engaged as much as possible because I think that I have a great responsibility. I take that responsibility seriously, and I look forward to tomorrow's meeting and not just with President Trump. It is important to say that tomorrow, as well, I'll be meeting the Prime Minister of Japan. I'll be meeting with the European leaders. I have a dinner that I'm about to go to now, a reception with a range of leaders as well, including the partners who've been invited here to the G7. And so, these meetings I find very useful. I think that, in part, I develop relationships with people by just dealing with them in a straight way. And that makes a big difference. Thank you very much, everyone.