Diplomatic history of Australia the democratic world. In a country gripped by this fear, the government's defence policy was dominated by the idea of "forward defence", in which Australia would seek to prevent the Communist "thrust into South-East Asia". The committal of troops to the Vietnam War was viewed as an attempt by the Menzies Government to strengthen the alliance with the USA following Great Britain's withdrawal "east of Suez". With his arrival in October 1966, Lyndon Baines Johnson became the first US President to visit Australia. The visit came in the light of increasing international criticism over the war in Vietnam. The majority
Kalākaua's 1874–75 state visit to the United States Kalākaua's 1874–75 state visit to the United States King Kalākaua 91-day journey to the United States, and back again, began in Honolulu on November 17, 1874. His arrival at San Francisco on November 28 was the beginning of a state visit, making him the first reigning monarch to visit the United States. Upon his arrival in Washington, D.C., the United States Congress held the first joint meeting in the body's history, less formal than a joint session, specifically to receive him. President Ulysses S. Grant hosted him as honoree of the first state dinner at the White House. A career