Latest news with #Skynews.com.au
Sky News AU
6 days ago
- Business
- Sky News AU
All eyes on Anthony Albanese's China visit as tensions mount between PM and Pentagon over AUKUS submarine review
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is set to speak to mining and steel executives in Shanghai to back industry efforts to decarbonise China's mammoth steel sector on day two of his diplomatic trip. Join for rolling news and political coverage. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will push for a new green steel deal with China, as he prepares to meet with top mining and steel executives on day two of his six-day long trip. Mr Albanese will argue that Australia's green future relies on finding a business oriented solution with China to slash emissions from iron ore mining and steel production. The meeting comes as the Prime Minister refuses to bow to Pentagon chief Elbridge Colby's demand for Australia to pre-commit US-supplied submarines in a potential American war with China. Subscribe to for full access and to watch exclusive interviews, press conferences and our day and night-time programs for just $5 a month.
Sky News AU
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Sky News AU
‘Looking forward to it': Princess Catherine expected to appear at Wimbledon
Digital Reporter Reilly Sullivan says he's confident Princess Catherine will attend the Wimbledon finals. 'Of course, she is the patron, so it is expected that she will appear,' Mr Sullivan told Sky News Digital Presenter Gabriella Power. 'I think she will rally for this, I think that she takes it very seriously, and it is very special to have the Princess of Wales handing out the trophies. 'I'd be pretty confident she will show up … looking forward to it.'
Sky News AU
15-06-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Australia warned it could 'never replicate' at risk AUKUS deal as Anthony Albanese prepares for crucial talks with Donald Trump
A foreign policy expert has warned Australia and the United Kingdom could "never replicate" AUKUS without support from the United States ahead of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's crucial meeting with President Donald Trump. Concerns about President Trump's approach to AUKUS were raised to new heights following the announcement last week his administration was launching a review into the the trilateral pact. Set to be led by AUKUS sceptic Elbridge Colby, the review has stoked fears the US could walk away from the agreement in what would come as a huge blow to Australia's defence and strategic plan. Mr Albanese is now facing significant pressure to convince President Trump of AUKUS' value, with many analysts expecting the US leader will pressure his Australian counterpart on defence spending when the two meet on the sidelines of the G7 on Wednesday. British Foreign Policy Group senior research and programs manager Eliza Keogh warned there was a "real possibility" President Trump would pull out of the pact, with the Australian and UK governments now jointly scrambling to keep the deal alive. "AUKUS offers clear strategic advantages for the US - from regional proximity to China, to access to Australian facilities for docking and servicing - and there is a possibility the review could just be the Trump administration increasing pressure on Australia to boost its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP," she told "Nevertheless, there is a real possibility the US could withdraw from AUKUS, particularly with AUKUS sceptic Elbridge Colby leading the review. "The Trump administration's tendency to prioritise short-term political calculations over strategic foresight means that it may opt to withdraw from AUKUS, despite its long-term focus on countering the rise of China, as short term interests - predominantly keeping US-built submarines at home - will win out." Several analysts and observers have highlighted flagging US submarine manufacturing as a potential dealbreaker, with the nation at risk of missing its goal to increase the size of its fleet to 66 vessels by 2049. Debate over the provision of Virginia class submarines to Australia - a stop-gap measure to ensure Australia remains well equipped while AUKUS vessels are constructed - has raged for almost two years and has drawn scrutiny from both Democrats and Republicans. Some have suggested President Trump may demand Australia increase the $3 billion it will send to the US to help offset production costs for the submarines in order to ensure the deal remains on tract, although Mr Albanese ruled out that possibility in 2023 and appears unlikely to change course. Instead, the Prime Minister is expected to emphasise the in-kind benefits AUKUS provides the US during his sit down with President Trump, while also pointing to Labor's $57 billion boost to defence spending over the next decade. According to Ms Keogh, highlighting Australia's role in deterring Chinese ambitions in the Indo-Pacific is likely to be another effective tactic given the US' desire to see "partners stepping up in the region". She also offered a more radical solution, which, while likely to appease President Trump, could also leave Australia dependent on the US until the first AUKUS vessels come online in the 2030s. "If they are looking to placate Trump, UK and Australian negotiators could look to renegotiate parts of the deal, including offering to loan submarines back to the US if necessary," Ms Keogh said. It remains to be seen what, if any concessions, Mr Albanese makes to the US President, but the foreign policy expert warned it would be impossible to replace AUKUS should Australia and the UK fail to maintain American support. "The UK and Australia have already agreed to negotiate a bilateral AUKUS treaty, but this could never replicate the scale and weight of the trilateral agreement," Ms Keogh said. Publicly both nations have sought to downplay the risk of US withdrawal, with Britain's Labour government highlighting the fact it held a similar review after it came to power. However, Ms Keogh explained officials were privately "very nervous" about how the Trump administration would proceed. The UK has made a flurry of announcements, including a pointed commitment to boost its own submarine production in coming years, as it attempts to demonstrate it is serious about raising its defence spend. Meanwhile, the Australian government has taken a different approach, pushing back against US calls to increase spending and insisting its current strategic plans are adequate. This has prompted intense criticism from a number of leading defence experts, who warn Australia is both weaker and less capable then in previous decades while also at risk of jeopardising its relationship with its most significant defence partner.
Sky News AU
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
'Can't ignore the irony': Anti-lockdown protest organiser points out 'double standard' after Australian journalist shot by rubber bullets in US previously celebrated his jailing
Anti-lockdown figurehead Anthony Khallouf has accused Nine News US correspondent Lauren Tomasi of applying a "double standard'' on protest reporting after she previously celebrated his jailing during the Covid pandemic. Ms Tomasi was shot in the leg by a rubber bullet on Monday while covering the immigration riots in Los Angeles, in an incident which has sparked concern at the highest levels for the Australian government. During the incident a law enforcement officer appeared to line his weapon up and fire directly at Ms Tomasi while she was reporting. The Australian journalist was seen grabbing her leg and yelling in pain before running away and telling her cameraman she was ok. However, her reporting has now been critcised by Mr Khallouf after she previously described his jailing as a 'good result' and a "warning" to others who chose to protest the government's lockdown laws during the pandemic. In a 2021 tweet that has now resurfaced Ms Tomasi wrote: 'This is a good result. And hopefully a warning to any other 'freedom rally' protesters who want to attend tomorrow". The Nine journalist was responding to a breaking news report of Mr Khallouf being sentenced to a maximum of eight months in prison – with a non-parole period of three months – for his involvement in organising an anti-lockdown protest in Sydney, and for breaching public health orders by travelling to Sydney from Queensland. Following the news of Ms Tomasi being struck in the LA riots, Mr Khallouf told the journalist applauded state force when it "suited her", and now she has been "hit by the same system she defended". "There's a clear double standard in how protests are treated—ours were criminalised, others were celebrated," he said. "I can't ignore the irony. "She once said my sentence should be a warning, now the warning's come full circle." Mr Khallouf also called out other journalists and how they reported on his jailing, and told anti-lockdown supporters they could be tracked down by police. "The media acted like government enforcers during COVID—vilifying dissent and silencing debate," he said. "They helped normalise authoritarianism, and people aren't forgetting that." Australian anti-lockdown protests were met with extreme force during the Covid pandemic, including the use of rubber bullets.
Mercury
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Mercury
Prince Harry to owe more than $1.3 million to British taxpayers over failed legal battle
Digital Reporter Reilly Sullivan claims British taxpayers are set to be owed over $1.3 million in costs related to Prince Harry's failed legal battle with the British Home Office. 'When Harry and Meghan left royal duties, they were no longer entitled to taxpayer-funded Met police officers,' Mr Sullivan told Sky News Digital Presenter Gabriella Power. 'This has really been an ongoing court battle for over four years. 'He's lost multiple times on appeals. 'He will be expected to likely reimburse the home office and therefore the taxpayer this money. 'If he does repay the $1.3 million on top of his own legal fees, it's estimated that he spent in the ballpark of about $5 million just on this legal battle. 'It's not a good look. 'It's the legal system … that really have better things to do with their time than hear Harry's grievance in his $20 million mansion, I think they're sick of it.'
