"An exciting new chapter in our shared history": Albanese lauds Australia-US deals on critical minerals, defence cooperation

Washington DC [US], October 21 : Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday (local time) hailed the landmark agreements worth billions signed with the US, aimed at strengthening cooperation on critical minerals and defence collaboration.

In a post on X, the Australian PM stated the deals were "an exciting new chapter" in the shared history of the two allies.

"For decades, Australia's alliance with the United States has supported security and prosperity. Our partnership is strong. And I'm here in Washington D.C. with President Trump building on it for the future," Albanese said in the post, following the official signing of the deals at the White House.

"Today we've announced we'll make more things together using Australia's critical minerals to power American technology. A huge investment by both our countries in Australia. And an exciting new chapter in our shared history," he added.

The agreements were signed during a joint event with US President Donald Trump at the Oval Office, marking a significant step in expanding economic and strategic ties between the two countries.

"We are great friends and we're great allies. Our defence and security partnership with AUKUS is so important and our economic relationship is so important. Today's agreement on critical minerals and rare earths is just taking it to the next level," Albanese said during the ceremony.

President Trump also praised the enduring relationship between the two nations, saying, "We've been long-term, long-time allies. And I would say there's never been anybody better. It's a great honour to have you in the United States of America."

A factsheet released by the White House described the Critical Minerals Framework as a "model for supply-chain cooperation globally".

According to the factsheet, the two governments plan to jointly invest more than USD three billion into critical mineral projects, with recoverable resources valued at USD 53 billion.

The US Export-Import Bank has issued seven Letters of Interest amounting to USD 2.2 billion in financing, potentially unlocking up to USD 5 billion in total investments in critical mineral and supply-chain security projects.

It also stated that the US Department of War will fund the construction of a 100 metric tonne-per-year advanced gallium refinery in Western Australia, further pushing for self-reliance in critical mineral processing.

Albanese underscored the scale of the collaboration, stating, "USD 8.5 billion in the pipeline... There will be USD 1 billion contributed from Australia and the United States over the next six months with projects that are immediately available."

On the defence front, Australia has agreed to purchase USD 1.2 billion worth of Anduril unmanned underwater vehicles and will begin receiving the first tranche of Apache helicopters under a separate USD 2.6 billion deal.

In addition, Australia has already contributed USD 1 billion to help expand the US submarine industrial base, with another USD 1 billion expected by the end of the year.

According to the factsheet, these efforts are part of strengthening the trilateral AUKUS security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Australia is also investing heavily in its air and missile defence capabilities, including USD 2 billion in contracts with US companies for its Joint Air Battle Management System.

The US-Australia alliance is additionally working to reinforce munitions supply-chain resilience under Australia's Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) initiative.

The new agreements are also poised to support over 200 manufacturing suppliers across US states, including Texas, Florida, Arkansas, and Alabama, as stated in the factsheet.

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