WASHINGTON -- Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks met yesterday with Australian Secretary of Defence Greg Moriarty to advance the United States-Australia Alliance and compare perspectives on managing national defense enterprises.

Secretary Moriarty conveyed to Deputy Secretary Hicks the Australian government's decision to provide lethal and non-lethal aid to Ukraine. The Deputy Secretary welcomed the announcement as a demonstration of Australia's enduring commitment to global peace and security.

The two leaders discussed progress in the Australia-UK-U.S. trilateral security partnership (AUKUS), including the identification of initial advanced capabilities to pursue through trilateral cooperation, governance processes for the trilateral partnership, and efforts to bolster information-sharing.

They also discussed Alliance management issues, to include defense industrial base cooperation and pending U.S. strategic reviews.

Deputy Secretary Hicks and Secretary Moriarty committed to working closely to advance Alliance priorities and objectives to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.