Scott Morrison to meet US Vice-President Kamala Harris in Washington DC after first leaders Quad meeting

Scott Morrison will today meet US Vice-President Kamala Harris after an historic first leaders meeting of the Quad. Mr Morrison will spend the early morning (WA time) at the White House in talks between India, Japan, the US and Australia. Space co-operation and more critical minerals trade will be key agenda items for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, aimed at combating China’s rise and securing peace and safety in the Indo-Pacific region. Mr Morrison will meet Ms Harris — the first female US vice-president — to finish off his whirlwind week in America. The meeting comes as he faces continued pressure over the treatment of women in Federal Parliament with Brittany Higgins — who made international headlines after her alleged rape in Parliament House was revealed — saying the proposed changes by the Morrison Government to protect staff did not go far enough. Yesterday, Mr Morrison said he would be able to give Ms Harris, below, a “very positive report” about changes he’d made to ensure Parliament was safer for women. On critical minerals and the Quad agreement expected today, Mr Morrison said it would result in more Australia jobs. The four leaders are expected to map out supply chains for key products and minerals to understand where vulnerabilities are. Rare earths and critical minerals are used in everything from mobile phones and computers to wind turbines and defence industry technology. China supplies most of the world’s critical minerals and rare earths elements, but many of the world’s democracies would like to buy more from Australia due in part to security concerns. The Quad will co-operate on space research and technology. Mr Morrison also addressed the United Nations General Assembly via a video message. He talked up Australia’s climate commitments without agreeing to net zero emissions by 2050.