US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will travel to Israel, Germany, NATO headquarters in Belgium and Britain starting on Saturday, the Pentagon said in a statement released late Thursday.
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"Secretary Austin will meet with his counterparts and other senior officials to discuss the importance of international defense relationships, and reinforce the United States' commitment to deterrence and defense, burden sharing, and enduring trans-Atlantic security," the statement read.
According to the statement, Austin is expected to arrive in Israel on Sunday and meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Benny Gantz to "continue close consultations on shared priorities and reaffirm the enduring US commitment to the US-Israel strategic partnership and Israel's qualitative military edge."
In addition to meeting with Netanyahu and Gantz, Austin will hold meetings in Germany with German Minister of Defense Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Chancellery Foreign and Security Policy Adviser Dr. Jan Hecker, to "reinforce the value the United States places on the bilateral defense relationship with one of its closest NATO allies."
While in Germany, Austin is slated to visit the US European Command and US African command headquarters.
Austin's itinerary includes a visit to Belgium, where he is scheduled to meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to discuss how NATO is tackling destabilizing behavior by Russia, a rising China, terrorism, and global challenges such as COVID-19 and climate change.
Finally, Austin will meet in the UK with British Secretary of State for Defense Ben Wallace.
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