It was supposed to be a diplomatic triumph, but a tense exchange between US President Donald Trump and Australia’s Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd has stolen the spotlight from Anthony Albanese’s long-awaited White House visit.
In a 35-minute meeting that secured an $8.5 billion critical minerals deal and reaffirmed US support for AUKUS, the encounter between the US President and Australia’s ambassador to Washington quickly became the headline moment.
The awkward exchange unfolded when a reporter asked Trump whether Rudd’s past criticisms – including branding him a “village idiot” and “traitor to the West” – had delayed the long-sought meeting with Albanese. Trump initially claimed he didn’t “know anything about” the person being mentioned, asking the Prime Minister where “this guy” was and whether he still worked for him.
When Albanese pointed out Rudd sitting across the table, Trump turned to the former prime minister and asked bluntly if he had “said bad” things about him. “Before I took this position, Mr President,” Rudd replied.
Trump’s response – “I don’t like you either and I probably never will” – drew laughter from the room, including from the Australian Prime Minister, who later moved to smooth over the moment. Sources said Rudd apologised to Trump privately once cameras were off.
The tense but memorable exchange has since gone viral, replayed across global news networks and social media.
Back home, however, the fallout has been more severe. Opposition deputy leader Sussan Ley called Rudd’s position “untenable”, arguing the ambassador had become “the punchline of the joke” at Australia’s most important diplomatic table.
“It’s taken nearly a year to get this meeting, and that’s been a failure of the ambassador,” Ms Ley said. “When the Prime Minister is laughing at his own envoy, I think that tells us all we need to know.”
But others urged calm. Former Australian ambassador to Washington Arthur Sinodinos told Channel Nine’s Today program that while the moment was “clearly awkward”, it didn’t warrant Rudd’s removal.
“Look, in this business, you live by the sword, you die by the sword,” he said. “I don’t think this means the Prime Minister is about to junk the ambassador – they’re very close.”
Despite the diplomatic cringe, Albanese walked away with tangible wins. Trump hailed him as “highly respected” and “very popular”, praised Australia as “a great ally”, and appeared to reaffirm his support for AUKUS, pledging to “accelerate” progress on the defence pact.
For the Prime Minister, it was a meeting that delivered major policy success. But one destined to be remembered for a single, unforgettable Trump one-liner.
Images: X (Formerly Twitter)
