Key Points
- Anthony Albanese to meet the US President in coming hours
- Issues to be ‘worked through’ in PNG defence treaty
- Max Verstappen wins US Formula 1 Grand Prix
TRANSCRIPT
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is due to meet with US President Donald Trump in Washington in the coming hours.
AUKUS, trade tariffs and critical minerals will be on the agenda in the long-anticipated first official meeting between the two leaders since Mr Trump’s inauguration in January.
The assistant minister for productivity, Andrew Leigh, says it is an important meeting.
"The Prime Minister will be in the Oval Office making the case for Australia's interests - as he always does, with respectful engagement. This is an ongoing conversation with an important security ally and trading partner. And I expect the meeting will go warmly and be an important meeting as part of an ongoing engagement with the US."
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Nationals M-P Barnaby Joyce appears to have rejected calls for him to remain in the federal party - and hasn't ruled out joining One Nation.
Mr Joyce announced over the weekend that he plans to quit the Nationals at the next election, which prompted Nationals leader David Littleproud to publicly call for him to stay with the party.
Mr Joyce told Seven's Sunrise program says he feels the relationship with the party leadership is beyond repair - and he is firm in his decision to leave.
"Playing this sort of silly game, this charade of - everything is fine. It's all going well. Well, it wasn't. And the best thing to do there is to move on, which is what I intend to do."
He says spoke with One Nation leader Pauline Hanson over the weekend, but no final decision has been made on whether he will join the party at this stage.
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The new defence treaty between Australia and Papua New Guinea is a step closer to being implemented, a fortnight after it was signed.
From next year, eligible permanent residents living in Australia who are also Papua New Guinea citizens, will be able to apply to join the Australian Defence Force.
The Pukpuk Treaty is Australia's first new alliance in more than 70 years.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong says the 31st Papua New Guinea-Australia Ministerial Forum in Canberra is a good opportunity to work out the details for the rest of the agreement.
"We do elevate the relationship across the board to reflect what the alliance means. I am sure that there will be many things that we discuss today. But I can announce a couple of things - a new education and skills package worth over 150 million dollars to support Papua New Guinea's economic growth and human development. I am also pleased to announce a 25-million-dollar humanitarian and disaster relief package to build capacity within PNG's disaster monitoring and response."
PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko says there are number of issues that he wants to work through.
"From visas to implementation of our current programs, projects that have been going on through many years through defence education, health, technology, communications and of course defence. And we look forward to those outcomes. We are there in partnership. We are working together as one - for the benefit of both countries. "
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French President Emmanuel Macron says everything is being done to catch the people behind a spectacular jewel heist at one of the world's most famous galleries.
In just seven minutes, thieves with power tools stole 8 objects from the Louvre in Paris on Sunday, including the emerald-and-diamond necklace that Napoleon gave his wife Empress Marie Louise, and the crown of Empress Eugenie.
In what locals say was like a Hollywood movie scene, police found a damaged, 19th century crown near the building after the brazen grab.
It is one of a series of raids targeting French museums in recent months, with 60 investigators now searching for four suspects.
Louvre employee and cultural union national secretary, Elise Muller, says staff believe there should have been more effort directed to security over entertainment of tourists.
"So, the Louvre staff, including myself, are both extremely sad and extremely angry about what happened today. Extremely sad because, obviously, it's our job to protect this building, this institution, the collections it houses, and the public who visit it. And in fact, today, it wasn't protected as we would have liked."
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In motor sports, Max Verstappen has won the United States Grand Prix.
Verstappen held the lead from start to finish to reduce the gap in the drivers’ championship between him and Oscar Piastri to 40 points with five races remaining for the season.
He says there were challenges.
"In the race, what was key was just that first stint. Charles was of course battling with Lando and that was where I could pull the gap. Because as soon as Lando was in clear air it was very evenly matched. Or he was slightly faster. We managed the gap until the end. But it wasn't super easy. Time management was tough today. Also, with the wind with every lap, you could expect something different. So in that race to be that consistent was quite tough. But we managed to pull it off."
Starting sixth in the race, Piastri was able to move up one position, after Mercedes driver George Russell dropped from fourth to sixth.
