Well, that’s a relief: Australia may not be a high priority for Donald Trump, but neither are we in the diplomatic deep freezer.
Just as Anthony Albanese’s failure to secure his first meeting with Trump was beginning to become politically damaging, the prime minister has locked in a White House visit next month. This is a victory for Albanese, even if it means he will have to schlep back to the United States for the third time this year.
The fact the meeting was being organised behind the scenes helps explain why the Prime Minister has appeared so laid-back in New York this week, despite mounting criticism about his failure to score any face time with Trump eight months into his second presidency.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and US President Donald Trump at the president’s welcome reception. Credit: Instagram
Albanese certainly looks happy in the selfie he posted to Instagram on Wednesday afternoon, Australia time, which showed him beaming next to Trump after a brief conversation at the president’s welcome reception of world leaders attending the United Nations General Assembly.
“Good to chat with President Donald Trump at US welcome reception for world leaders attending United Nations General Assembly hosted by @potus and @flotus,” Albanese noted in the caption.
It’s also a win for United States ambassador Kevin Rudd, who was facing increasing scrutiny about his access to the White House. Rudd looked like the cat that swallowed the King Island double cream at an appearance alongside Albanese in New York after the meeting was confirmed, declaring he was “delighted” by the development.
While stories about Albanese being “snubbed” will now subside, the 270 odd days between Trump’s inauguration and the date of the pair’s first bilateral meeting remains far longer than normal. The lag matters because it symbolises a deeper truth about the anaemic state of the US-Australia alliance since Trump’s return to office.
There have been several signs that our most important ally views Australia as something of an afterthought: the lack of a US ambassador in Canberra; the Pentagon’s review into AUKUS; and US officials dismissing Defence Minister Richard Marles’ latest meeting with counterpart Peter Hegseth as a “happenstance encounter”.
Far beyond problems with logistics, the ideological chasm between the Trump administration and Albanese government helps explain why a leaders’ meeting has taken so long to arrange. Trump’s almost hour-long speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, New York time, was a vivid reminder of the extreme, unorthodox and often downright bizarre president Albanese will encounter on October 20.
