FILE PHOTO: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer attends a bilateral meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa. Picture date: Friday October 25, 2024. Stefan Rousseau/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has congratulated Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese's election win in a phone call and the two agreed to bolster defence and security cooperation, Starmer's office said on Sunday.
"Discussing defence and security, including our shared support for Ukraine, the leaders also agreed to increase ambition on our joint submarine programme, AUKUS," Starmer's Downing Steet office said in a readout of their call.
Starmer has said he will ask London's special representative to the AUKUS defence project, Stephen Lovegrove, to travel to Australia in the coming weeks to discuss the programme further, the statement added.
(Reporting by Muvija M; editing by Mark Heinrich)
