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US defence chief to visit Israel, Germany, Belgium, UK

April 9, 2021 at 8:20 pm

US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin in New Delhi, India on 20 March 2021 [Imtiyaz Khan/Anadolu Agency]

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin will depart Washington, DC tomorrow to meet with government and military leaders in Israel, Germany, NATO headquarters in Belgium and the UK, Anadolu Agency reports.

“Secretary Austin will meet with his counterparts and other senior officials to discuss the importance of international defence relationships and reinforce the United States’ commitment to deterrence and defence, burden sharing, and enduring trans-Atlantic security,” said Pentagon in a statement.

In Israel, Austin “will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Benjamin Gantz to continue close consultations on shared priorities and reaffirm the enduring U.S. commitment to the U.S.-Israel strategic partnership and Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge,” according to the statement.

In Germany, Austin will meet with his German counterpart Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Chancellery Foreign and Security Policy Adviser Dr. Jan Hecker.

The defence chief will reinforce the value the US places on its bilateral defence relationship with Germany.

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“Other topics of discussion include combatting the malign influence of our shared strategic rivals and continued dialogue on U.S. force posture in Germany and elsewhere,” it added.

Austin will also visit US European Command and US Africa Command headquarters in Germany to meet with American troops.

He will next visit Belgium to meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg “on how the Alliance is tackling destabilizing behaviour by Russia, a rising China, terrorism and global challenges such as COVID-19 and climate change.”

In the final part of his tour, the defence chief will visit the UK and meet with Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace “to reaffirm the continuing importance of US-UK defence cooperation to meet global security challenges,” it said.