Secretary of Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper spoke with his Timor-Leste counterpart, Minister of Defense Filomeno da Paixão de Jesus. Both leaders offered sympathies to those affected by COVID-19 in the United States and Timor-Leste. Secretary Esper commended Timor-Leste’s success in controlling the spread of COVID-19, and Minister Filomeno conveyed Timor-Leste’s gratitude to the United States for allocating $2.4 million in COVID-19 relief funding. Secretary Esper and Minister Filomeno also discussed bilateral defense priorities, including military exercises, security cooperation funding for Baucau Airport, and Timor-Leste’s partnership with the Rhode Island National Guard.