Australia, UK reaffirm close partnership on security issues

Australia and the United Kingdom reaffirmed at an annual ministerial meeting on Monday that both countries will maintain their close partnership on a range of security and foreign policy issues.

A joint statement at the 7th Australia-UK Ministerial Consultations (AUKMIN) in Sydney stressed that both countries agreed to continue to work closely in fighting against international terrorism and foreign fighters.

"Our agenda focused on the Middle East, including responding to the growing threat of Daesh also known as ISIL and foreign fighters, Afghanistan, the evolving security situation in East Asia, and defense planning and inter-operability. Our dialogue on these issues reinforced the value of the strong co-operation between our countries," the statement said.

Both governments promised to continue their consultations on the Australian Defense White Paper and the UK Strategic Defense and Security Review and exchange views on strategic issues that appear on the UN Security Council agenda, "building on Australia's successful two-year term on the Council."

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond signed a memorandum of understanding on the reciprocal use of diplomatic facilities at times of crisis.

The deal formalizes the practice whereby officials use the other country's diplomatic facilities during a major crisis or incident in locations where one of the countries has a diplomatic mission and the other does not.

Australia's Minister for Defense Kevin Andrews and UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon discussed ways to improve interoperability between the two armed forces, for further cooperation on the Joint Strike Fighter, and for dialogue surrounding maritime capability and emerging defense technologies.

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