US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will be hosting his Quad counterparts for talks that seek to return the focus to Indo-Pacific issues. Mr Rubio, Australia’s Penny Wong, India’s S Jaishankar and Japan’s Takeshi Iwaya will have to address China’s growing influence, the need for a US step-up in defence, as well as tariff tensions. This is Mr Rubio’s second Quad meeting since US President Donald Trump returned to office in January. Meanwhile, a marathon voting session in the US Senate has almost hit the 24-hour mark, as Republicans move to pass Mr Trump’s sweeping tax cut and spending bill, dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill”. Nick Harper reports from Washington DC.
