U.S. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, thanked Australia for its support regarding the war on terrorism, declaring that the country is "a steadfast friend." Rice had a morning meeting with Prime Minister John Howard and Australia's National Security Council right before she left for Melbourne, for a meeting with Australian troops.

"As we continue to fight the war on terrorism and continue to try and supplant that ideology of hatred that exists behind terrorism with the hope of democracy and the liberty around the world, it is wonderful to have a steadfast friend like Australia," she added.

Howard said Australia is not considering lifting the ban on supplying uranium to countries which have not signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT) and announced that a team of government officials will visit the U.S. and India to discuss the agreement to supply nuclear fuel and technology to India.

"There isn't going to be any immediate change in government policy. Obviously, like all policies, you never say never. But obviously we have a policy and we're not going to change it because of the agreement between the United States and India." However, the meeting contained some different tones over the rise of China, Rice criticizing its military expansion while Howard warned against trying to "contain" its ambitions.

Rice praised China's cooperation on North Korea and Iran, while also criticizing its military, economic and human rights policies. "We want a region that is at peace, we want a region in which free trade and a rules-based international economy is going forward, that leads to greater prosperity for our people at home and people in the region more generally. We want a region in which proliferation of weapons of destruction is not a problem," Rice asserted.