Tony Abbott has agreed to expand Australia’s defence cooperation with the United States at a meeting with Barack Obama and later left open the possibility of Australian assistance in combating the escalating civil war in Iraq.

Obama used brief remarks to the media after the meeting in the White House to say the Iraqi government needed “more help” to fight the Islamic insurgency and that he had not “ruled out” any options.



"I don't rule out anything because we do have a stake in making sure that these jihadists are not getting a permanent foothold in either Iraq or Syria for that matter," Obama said.

He said the US was prepared to take military action whenever its national security was threatened and Australia was one of the handful countries in the world “that we always know we can count on, not just because they share our values, but we know we can count on them because they've got real capacity.”

"Aussies know how to fight. I like to have them in a foxhole when we are in trouble."

A White House spokesman ruled out a redeployment of US ground troops, but other officials reportedly said the use of drones and airstrikes had not been ruled out.

Asked by the ABC whether Australia could offer any assistance in the fight against insurgents in Iraq, Abbott said: “I think it’s very early days to be talking about that ... but this is a very serious situation and no one should take it lightly and the last thing anyone should want is to see is a large swath of Iraq under the control of al-Qaida-type operatives.”

After the meeting, Abbott told reporters: "The United States is considering what an appropriate response might be. They haven't finalised their views on what the response should be.

"They haven't requested assistance from us. It is really quite routine for us to be in discussions with the United States when situations like this arise. Let's see what, if any, help they might request but obviously any request for help would be taken very seriously by us."

The president revealed he and Abbott had entered “additional agreements” about the US force deployment in the Northern Territory, in addition to the agreement he struck with the former prime minister Julia Gillard in 2011.

“In addition to the marines that are now in Darwin and the rotations that have been established, we actually have arrived at additional agreements around force postures that will enhance the bilateral cooperation between our militaries and give us additional reach throughout this very important part of the world. And we’re grateful for the cooperation there,” Obama said.



Tony Abbott's car encounters a few media obstacles as it leaves the White House Photograph: Instagram/danroberts73

About 1,150 marines are now deployed at the “marine air ground task force” with a full contingent of 2,500 scheduled to be deployed by 2016-17.

It is understood the expanded agreement could include more US ships coming to Western Australia and joint exercises involving Australian, US and Asian countries' military forces.

Abbott said later he and the president had “concluded negotiations over a force posture agreement this is basically about the sorts of logistical arrangements that will apply to US troops who are rotating through Darwin … and this gives us the opportunity not just for Australia and US forces to train together … but for our regional partners to train together with us”, referring to planned exercises later this year with both US and Chinese troops.

Obama praised Australia for increasing its spending on defence.

“I should note that Australia, under the prime minister’s leadership, is increasing its defence budget, even under tough times, recognising that we all have to make sure that we’re doing our fair share to help maintain global order and security,” he said.

The meeting did not end with a media conference, but with brief remarks and just a few questions, during which the issue of climate change was not raised.

Despite the warm words in public, it is understood the private talks included a frank discussion on climate change. The leaders noted they had “different approaches” on the issue and that “energy efficiency” would be discussed at the G20 leaders’ meeting in Brisbane in November.

The White House’s spokesman, Jay Carney, said Obama emphasised the need for countries to adopt "ambitious domestic climate policies as the basis of a strong international response".



Abbott played down differences on the issue.



He told the ABC; “I don’t think people should run around pretending there is a disagreement when none exists”, saying both he and Obama “take climate change very seriously” and “we have strong and effective policies coming in to place to deal with it”.



''We all want to do the right thing by our planet,'' he said. ''I regard myself as a conservationist.''



The brief opportunity to question the leaders after the meeting was dominated by the worsening situation in Iraq.



“My team is working around the clock to identify how we can provide the most effective assistance to them [the Iraqi government],” Obama said.



“... In our consultations with the Iraqis, there will be some short-term, immediate things that need to be done militarily ... this should be also a wake-up call for the Iraqi government.”



Abbott assured the president “Australia will be an utterly dependable ally of the United States. The United States has had to bear many burdens, many burdens. The United States has paid a very high price to secure freedom and prosperity for many countries – not just itself – and the United States should never have to do all that work on its own”.



And in remarks at a subsequent meeting with the US secretary of state, John Kerry, Abbott said he was “particularly grateful for America’s continuing, deep, and strong involvement in south-east Asia. Because while there is so much that is good in our region, there are, nevertheless, security challenges. And there is the importance of ensuring that we are all good international citizens.”



Some observers, including the former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Fraser, have argued Australia should close the US base in Darwin and become strategically independent, saying the deepening military alliance with the US could pose a threat rather than a protection, by drawing Australia into regional conflict.



The White House meeting, which went for over an hour, was also attended by Kerry, the US Treasury Secretary, Jack Lew, and the vice-president, Joe Biden.

Abbott was greeted at the White House by a ceremonial military guard, a gesture not often accorded to foreign leaders. During their meeting at the Oval Office, the pair discussed hotspots such as Ukraine, Syria and North Korea, as well as the proposed trans-Pacific free trade pact and maritime disputes in the South China Sea.

