US Secretary of State to visit Perth (AAP)

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith hopes the world's most powerful woman will find the locals friendly when she flies into Perth on Thursday for a two-day visit. In only the second visit to Western Australia by an American Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice will be Mr Smith's personal guest following an invitation he gave her in Washington earlier this year. Her schedule is a tightly-guarded secret for security reasons but a Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) spokesman said she would attend a dinner on Thursday evening and an "event" and news conference on Friday. Meanwhile, Mr Smith says he hopes to provide a relaxed tone for the visit and to show off his state's unique culture and hospitality. "The visit by Secretary Rice follows my personal invitation to her to visit my hometown and electorate when we first met... [read full story]