CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Wednesday his 12-day, four-nation tour will bolster his country’s economic and national security.
Abbott left Australia on Wednesday for Indonesia, France, Canada and the United States.
He will attempt to improve bilateral relations with Indonesia through talks with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on the island of Batam on Wednesday before flying to France for the 70th anniversary commemorations for the World War II D-Day landings.
Abbott will then lead a business delegation to Ottawa, Washington, D.C., New York, Houston and Hawaii.
“It will be another opportunity for me to demonstrate that Australia is open for business,” Abbott told reporters in the national capital Canberra before his departure.
“It will be a further opportunity for me to bolster Australia’s economic and national security,” he said.
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