Australia PM Albanese speaks to Trump as ambassador deletes comments after election win

SYDNEY - Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he had spoken with Donald Trump on Nov 7 after the Republican’s US election win, as Australia’s US ambassador deleted comments he had previously made about Trump, saying they did not reflect the view of the Australian government.

Mr Albanese said he had spoken to Trump on the morning of Nov 7 about security ties, including the Aukus deal, which will see Australia buy US nuclear submarines next decade and develop a new class of nuclear-powered submarines with the US and Britain.

“We talked about the importance of the Alliance, and the strength of the Australia-US relationship in security, Aukus, trade and investment,” Mr Albanese wrote.

During Trump’s first term as president, Australia’s conservative Liberal government grew more hawkish on China and worked to keep the US engaged in the Indo-Pacific region as a counter to China, including through the Quad group of India, Japan, US and Australia.

One potential issue is the relationship between the incoming administration and Australia’s ambassador in Washington, former Labor Party prime minister Kevin Rudd.

Mr Rudd had previously made disparaging comments about Trump in his capacity as the head of a US-based think-tank, a statement on his personal website said.

Among the deleted comments, Mr Rudd had in 2020 described Trump as “the most destructive president in history”.

“Out of respect for the office of President of the United States, and following the election of President Trump, Ambassador Rudd has now removed these past commentaries from his personal website and social media channels,” the statement said.

Mr Rudd wanted to “eliminate the possibility of such comments being misconstrued as reflecting his positions as Ambassador and, by extension, the views of the Australian Government”, it added.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Nov 7 the centre-left Labor government was confident of its alliance with the US, its biggest security partner.

Ms Wong said in radio and television interviews on Nov 7 she had met Mr Mike Pompeo, who served as secretary of state in the previous Trump administration during the election campaign, and there was bipartisan support for Aukus.

“The United States is our principal strategic partner. We share very, very clear strategic objectives,” she told the Today programme. “We both want a region which is stable, a region which is peaceful, and there’s bipartisan support for Aukus, which is a key part of that.”

Trump, when asked about Mr Rudd’s comments in a British TV interview in March, said Mr Rudd was “not the brightest bulb” and “nasty”.

“He won’t be there long if that’s the case,” Trump said.

Ms Wong said she backed Mr Rudd’s ability to work with a Republican administration.

Mr Rudd was the chief executive of the Asia Society think-tank in New York until 2023, when he was appointed as ambassador. REUTERS