HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases...Secretary Blinken’s Call with Australian Foreign Minister Payne hide Secretary Blinken’s Call with Australian Foreign Minister Payne Readout Office of the Spokesperson November 3, 2021 The below is attributable to Spokesperson Ned Price: Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne to continue our ongoing efforts to ensure a peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific following September’s Australia-United States Ministerial (AUSMIN) meetings in Washington. They discussed the Australia-UK-U.S. (AUKUS) trilateral security partnership and the ways in which we will deepen our engagement with other key allies and partners in our collective efforts to uphold a free and open Indo-Pacific. They also recommitted to our collective work in the region to build back better from COVID-19. Tags Australia Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs Office of the Spokesperson The Secretary of State