Biden-Albanese's Private Dinner

U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden welcomed Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his partner Jodie Haydon to the White House for a private dinner on Tuesday evening. Albanese is the fouth world leader to receive this honour.

Biden has invited Albanese to the U.S. on a state visit, the highest diplomatic honor that Washington reserves for its closest allies, after the president cut short his trip to the Indo-Pacific by canceling a stop in Australia last May so he could return to the White House for crucial budget talks with Congress. Albanese is the fourth world leader to be honored with a state visit during Biden's term, after the leaders of France, South Korea and India. Tuesday's meeting precludes a more grand state dinner on Wednesday.