WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden welcomed Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to the White House for a visit Wednesday in the shadows of wars in Israel and Ukraine, which the leaders addressed multiple times throughout their public events.
In opening remarks at the joint news conference, Biden started by addressing the war in Israel, acknowledging the "sense of outrage" after "the brutally inflicted devastation by Hamas" while also calling out "extremist settlers."
"I continue to be alarmed about extremist settlers attacking Palestinians in the West Bank," he said, comparing it to pouring gasoline on a fire.
"They're attacking Palestinians in places that they're entitled to be," he added. "It has to stop. They have to be held accountable, and it has to stop now."
Biden also reiterated his assertions that Israel has a right and a responsibility to respond to the Hamas attacks.
"Hamas is hiding behind Palestinian civilians, and it's despicable and, not surprisingly, cowardly, as well," he said. "This also puts an added burden on Israel while they go after Hamas. But that does not lessen the need for — to operate and align with the laws of war."
Earlier, the day kicked off with a formal arrival ceremony, where the president and first lady Jill Biden greeted Albanese and his partner, Jodie Haydon, as a band played patriotic music, including both countries' national anthems.
Biden touted the relationship between the allies in brief remarks during the ceremony.
"Mr. Prime Minister, the alliance between Australia and the United States has never been more important than it is today, and we have never been more committed than we are today," he said.
Biden also briefly mentioned the wars in Ukraine and Israel, saying: "Together, we're standing with Israel against Hamas terrorism. We're standing with Ukraine against Putin's tyranny."
Albanese also mentioned the wars in brief remarks following Biden's, noting Australian assistance to Ukraine and Australians' condemnations of "the atrocities, terror and pitiless brutality of Hamas."
Biden and Albanese were expected to discuss cybersecurity, submarine cable infrastructure and the new Critical Minerals Task Force, which the two countries launched as a joint venture this year, senior administration officials said.
"We expect to make a big splash with a submarine cable project announcement, as well as two important maritime infrastructure announcements relevant to the Pacific islands," a senior administration official told reporters Tuesday.
The leaders are expected to sign an agreement Thursday that creates a framework for U.S. commercial space launches to take place from Australia, according to a White House fact sheet.
Albanese plans to visit China next month. Asked by a reporter whether Albanese and Biden would discuss Albanese's coming trip, a senior administration official said China and regional security issues have been discussed in every meeting that they have witnessed between American and Australian leaders.
"I know the president will be interested to share notes and compare details about what we’re seeing with respect to Xi Jinping and China," a senior administration official said.
The two leaders and their partners will attend a state dinner in the evening, along with Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff. The White House had planned for the band The B-52's to perform, but the group is attending the dinner as guests, instead, in light of painful world events, Jill Biden said, according to a pool report.
The speaker of the House is frequently invited to state dinners, but the position remained vacant until Wednesday afternoon as House Republicans struggled to rally around a candidate who could get enough votes. A senior White House official familiar with the matter said both Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., who was the interim speaker the past few weeks, had been invited but declined. Neither lawmaker's office could immediately be reached for comment.
Albanese's meeting is the fourth foreign leader visit with a state dinner during the Biden administration, according to the administration's senior director for East Asia and Oceania, Mira Rapp-Hooper. She said it is the ninth meeting between the two leaders since Albanese took office last year.
"Australia has been and continues to be a fundamental partner in achieving our shared vision of prosperity and stability around the world, and we have stood side by side in every conflict for the past hundred years," Rapp-Hooper said at a news briefing Tuesday. "That remains especially important today in a moment of grave crisis."
