Senior US defence official Elbridge Colby says US ‘will not be deterred’ from its call for allied countries to boost defence spending

News Snapshot:

Anthony Albanese has rebuffed a terse call from Donald Trump’s key defence adviser Elbridge Colby to dramatically increase its defence spending, as the Prime Minister begins a six-day trip to China amid reports Australian defence officials have been asked whether Australia would support the US in the event of a conflict in Taiwan. Overnight on Sunday, Mr Colby, the US Undersecretary of Defence, said the US’ position of “achieving peace through strength” was “abundantly and consistently clear,” and would include urging allies to “step up their defence spending and other efforts related to our collective defence”. This follows Mr Hegseth’s...