"I don't like you either. And I probably never will, US President Donald Trump told Australian ambassador Kevin Rudd at the White House cabinet room table. It was the testiest and most uncomfortable remark at a typically freewheeling and chaotic presidential press conference. But it was quickly followed by laughter across the packed room: the guffaws coming as if a pressure valve had been released in Australian government and diplomatic circles."
"In a gilded room adorned with portraits of presidents past, under gleaming chandeliers and flanked by golden crown moulding, the silver-tongued president didn't seem too fussed about controversial comments from the snowy-haired Australian ambassador. But face to face with the former prime minister inside the White House cabinet room, Trump appeared to not recognise Rudd, or even remember the comments, let alone allow it to sour the extraordinarily positive attitude he took with Albanese."
"In a press conference Trump spoke approvingly of a sharp haircut on an Australian reporter before calling another journalist a nasty guy, signed a major critical minerals deal with Albanese in his signature thick black texta pen, and careened from criticising incompetent predecessor Joe Biden to threatening Hamas with eradication to praising the flawless American strike on Iranian nuclear bases."
Donald Trump told Australian ambassador Kevin Rudd "I don't like you either" at the White House cabinet room table, provoking laughter across the packed room. Rudd later leaned over and apologised for past remarks about Trump. The meeting between Trump and prime minister Anthony Albanese was warm and drama-free, with Trump praising Albanese and signing a major critical minerals deal with a thick black marker. Trump oscillated during the press conference between compliments, insults toward journalists, criticism of Joe Biden, threats toward Hamas, and praise for a U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear sites. Conservative critics had previously feared lasting diplomatic rifts after Rudd's 2021 comments, but the encounter showed cordial presidential engagement.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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