Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense James Mattis will come to campus this week.
The two members of Trump’s cabinet will host their Australian counterparts Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop and Minister for Defence Marise Payne for the annual Australia-U.S. Ministerial (AUSMIN) Consultations discussing bilateral security, cooperation and regional political issues.
A joint media release by the Australian Ministers of Foreign Affairs and of Defense on July 10 said that the event will happen at the Hoover Institution on Monday and Tuesday.
On Friday, The San Francisco Chronicle reported that no public events involving the two Trump cabinet members are planned. However, University officials and local law enforcement alike anticipate protests.
Palo Alto Police Department spokesperson Janine De la Vega said that the upcoming visit is on the Department’s radar.
“We have a plan in place, but we are not going to reveal the details,” she told the Chronicle.
According to the Australian media release, the conference will focus on reinforcing a joint commitment to the openness, peace and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region as well as an adherence to an international rules-based order. Other issues to be discussed include interaction with North Korea, an approach toward China, counterterrorism and Middle East security.
“[AUSMIN] provides us with an excellent opportunity to just coordinate with Australia all of the relevant policies and programs that we will be using over the coming years,” said a senior State Department official in a teleconference transcript on the State Department website.
AUSMIN has been the principal forum for formal consultations between top Australian and U.S. officials since its conception in 1985. The conference, held alternately in the U.S. and in Australia, facilitates discussion on strategic, foreign and security questions in relation to the Australia-U.S. Alliance established in 1951.
“The Australia–US Alliance is vital to our security and prosperity,” said the Australian media release.
This year’s conference will mark 100 years since U.S. and Australian soldiers first fought in common in World War One.
Contact Sean Chen at kxsean ‘at’ stanford.edu.