 She reiterated Australia always will have an ally in Washington and a friend in Beijing.The United States has stated it supported multilateral talks on a regional basis to ensure disputes in the South China Sea is resolved peacefully even though it is not a party to any territorial dispute and claims to be not taking any sides.China reinforced its view the maritime dispute should be resolved bilaterally with all the countries involved rather than involving external forces which they see as interference and added layer of complexity.