WASHINGTON -- Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III will depart June 7 to meet with senior leaders and U.S. troops at NORTHCOM/NORAD at Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado, and discuss their ongoing mission to defend the U.S. homeland and space domain.

The Secretary will then travel to Singapore. As part of his fourth official visit to the Indo-Pacific region, Secretary Austin will participate in the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) 19th Shangri-La Dialogue with key Indo-Pacific leaders to advance U.S. defense partnerships across the region.

From there, Secretary Austin will travel to Bangkok, as the United States and Thailand take important steps toward modernizing the U.S.-Thai alliance and expanding the depth and breadth of our military cooperation.

Secretary Austin's Asia trip falls on the heels of the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit earlier this month and President Biden's visit to the Republic of Korea and Japan. It is an affirmation of the United States' deep commitment to working in concert with allies and partners to chart our shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific, anchored in ASEAN centrality.

The Secretary will next travel to Brussels, Belgium to host an in-person Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting with Ministers of Defense and Chiefs of Defense from around the world to discuss the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and various security issues facing U.S. Allies and partners.

Also, while in Brussels, Austin will participate in the NATO Defense Ministerial to discuss NATO common funding and credible defense and deterrence of the Alliance ahead of the 2022 NATO Madrid Summit. Leaders will discuss the applications of Sweden and Finland to the Alliance and continue conversations and collaboration about the ongoing NATO response to Russia's unprovoked invasion.