Scott Morrison has used his opening speeches in the United States to emphasise the shared values between Australia and America and attempt to land a nuanced message on trade – highlighting the importance of open markets as a bulwark against international conflict, but also emphasising the fact the US enjoys a trade surplus with Australia.

Morrison was greeted on Friday morning, Washington time, on the South Lawn of the White House by Donald and Melania Trump, with the administration welcoming the Australian prime minister with the traditional military arrival ceremony and a review of the troops.

The two leaders met privately before addressing reporters, with Morrison delivering two speeches during the day, the first during the ceremonial welcome and the second during a lunch at the state department hosted by the vice-president, Mike Pence, and the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo.

Violinists practice during a preview of the tables and settings for the state dinner in the Rose Garden at the White House. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

Morrison’s opening speech in America as prime minister emphasised shared values. Quoting Ronald Reagan, Morrison was to assert Australia shared the “truths and traditions” of America, and saw the world “through the same lens”.

“We believe in the capacity of enterprise and free markets to create wealth and lift all – and for free and fair trade to bring nations closer together,” the prime minister said. “We believe that governments derive their power from the consent of the governed and that the ballot box and democracy is the surest foundation for peace and security; and we believe in the rule of law and freedom of association.

“These beliefs spurred this country to build a mighty canal; stand up to fascism and militarism; rebuild the modern world after winning a great peace; inspired the fascination, wonder and joy of the world’s children through a little mouse who could whistle a tune; took humanity to the moon; tore down a wall that separated liberty from oppression; and imagined, engineered and built a digital world that has connected humanity in a way that we now can’t imagine being without.”

Morrison used the speech to argue the world was a better place because America was “living out its moral purpose” and making the countries of the world more prosperous. “The new economies of the world, lifting hundreds of millions from poverty, do so because they saw the United States define a century and do it first, and then invited and supported them to follow.”

With the damaging trade dispute between the US and China casting a shadow over the world economy, and over Morrison’s first visit to Washington, the Australian prime minister picked up the trade theme in his speech to the state department later on Friday, US time.

The Australian prime minister emphasised the American trade surplus with Australia – because Trump, who has pursued protectionist measures against China and other countries as part of the tit-for-tat trade war threatening global growth, believes trade surpluses are good and trade deficits are bad.

Appealing to the black-and-white sensibilities of his host, Morrison’s speech said Australia was “the gold standard of US trade partners” and noted the current US trade surplus with Australia was “greater than the combined US surpluses with all other G20 nations”.

It then broadened the message to the importance of open markets, assigning that principle as a bedrock of America’s 20th-century history.

“Trade and international engagement is the ultimate bulwark against global conflict,” Morrisons said. “This was the post-war vision of the nations, led by the US, that won the peace”.

The Australian prime minister’s speech argued open trade was critical but not sufficient in a world characterised by strategic competition. Emphasising Australia’s historical reliability as an ally, Morrison speech appealed to the US to remain engaged in the Indo-Pacific.

In addition to appealing, implicitly, for an ongoing American presence to help counter the hegemonic ambitions of China, Morrison’s speech signalled that Australia was stepping up in the region, “taking responsibility in our own neighbourhood” to defend shared values.

Again referencing China’s growing influence in the region, Morrison’s speech noted “where we have had success with partners in our region it has always been built on mutual respect for sovereignty and independence”.

Tables set during a media preview for the state dinner with Donald Trump and Scott Morrison. Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP

“It has also been made possible by our alliance with the United States and your presence and engagement in our region, that has provided the necessary stability in our region to pursue these relationships. Sustained US economic and security engagement in the Indo-Pacific has never been more necessary”.

Beyond the region, Morrison’s speech noted he and Trump shared a commitment to the “sovereignty and prosperity of Israel”. In the speech, the Australian prime minister underscored a shift by his government to take “an even stronger stand against the biased and unfair targeting of Israel in the UN General Assembly”.

Morrison will cap off a frenetic first day in Washington with a state dinner. Unusually the dinner was to be held outdoors, at the Rose Garden adjacent to the Oval Office in the White House. Preparations for the event were in full swing in Washington on Thursday night.

Preparations for tomorrow’s state dinner at the White House in full swing. It’s in the Rose Garden, so al fresco. What if it rains, I asked a staffer. “It won’t”, she said, emphatic. pic.twitter.com/2R5eiKfVgO — Katharine Murphy (@murpharoo) September 20, 2019

The Rose Garden is decked out in the Australian colours of green and gold. The leaders were expected to eat sunchoke ravioli, followed by dover sole, followed by apple pie and ice cream, and the crowd was to be entertained by military bands that were warming up on Thursday night.

The Morrisons presented their hosts with a bronze statue of Leslie “Bull” Allen, an infantry stretcher bearer from Ballarat, carrying an American soldier to safety in Papua New Guinea in 1943. The Australian prime minister told Trump the story of Allen, who rescued 12 American soldiers while under fire in the Pacific war, during their first telephone call.

Jenny Morrison presented Melania Trump with a set of Paspaley pearl earrings, and son Barron was to be given a personalised Socceroos jersey.