Pentagon Chief Spokesperson Dana W. White provided the
following readout:
September 20, 2017
On September 20, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis hosted
Australian Minister of Defense Marise Payne for a bilateral meeting to discuss
our robust defense relationship and the regional security challenges we
continue to face.
Secretary Mattis expressed his sincere and deep appreciation
to Minister Payne for Australia's assistance in the search, rescue, and
recovery efforts in early August following the MV-22 Osprey incident that took
the lives of three Marines off the Australian coast. Secretary Mattis also
highlighted the upcoming celebration of the first hundred years of
"Mateship" that underpins the ironclad Australia-U.S. alliance. The relationship is built from tight bonds of
trust, respect and friendship.
The two leaders also discussed concerns about destabilizing
actions in the South China Sea and the threat posed by North Korea. They emphasized the importance of the
international community coming together to hold Kim Jong-Un's regime
accountable and pressuring North Korea to give up their illegal nuclear weapons
program.
Secretary Mattis and Minister Payne also reaffirmed their
continued commitment and support to address the growing threat from ISIS and
other extremist groups, particularly in Southeast Asia.
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