Trump singles out Albanese for praise at dinner
The Australian and US leaders have shared a warm conversation at a dinner of world leaders ahead of a key summit in South Korea.
Source: Sunrise
US President Donald Trump has singled out Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for praise, as the two clinked glasses at a dinner with other world leaders.
Albanese had arguably the best seat in the house next to Trump at the gathering at the Hilton Hotel in Gyeongju in South Korea late on Wednesday (local time).
Trump reportedly hand-selected guests for the exclusive meal organised during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
In his opening remarks, Trump said Albanese had done a “fantastic job” on the multibillion-dollar critical minerals deal signed between Australia and the US earlier in October.
“We had a great meeting a week ago … You’ve done a fantastic job,” said Trump, according to reports.
“We’re working together on rare earths, but we’re working on a lot of things together.”
Trump reportedly clinked glasses with Albanese who was seated to his right at the round table. The other guests were the leaders of Singapore, South Korea, Vietnam, New Zealand, Canada and Thailand.
Albanese also received a pat on the arm from Trump.
It follows the high praise Trump heaped on Albanese when the two leaders met for the first time last week, despite an awkward moment when he told Australian ambassador Kevin Rudd: “I don’t like you”.
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Trump was effusive in his praise for Australia, which he described as an “amazing ally”. He said Albanese was a “great leader”.
“It’s a great honour to have you as my friend,” Trump said.
“It’s a great honour to have you in the United States of America.”
Trump is on the final leg of his Asia trip, which has also taken him to Malaysia and Japan.
The APEC forum dinner was held before Trump meets China’s President Xi Jinping on Thursday.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump said he was focused squarely on his meeting with the leader of the world’s second-largest economy.
“The relationship with China is very good. So I think we’re going to have a very good outcome for our country and for the world, actually,” Trump said.
He expected to reduce US tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for Beijing’s commitment to curb exports of fentanyl precursor chemicals, he said.
The US could halve the 20 per cent levies on Chinese goods it charges in retaliation for the export of such chemicals, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Addressing a summit of APEC CEOs in Gyeongju earlier, Trump said a trade deal with South Korea would be finalised “very soon”. However, officials on both sides have played down the prospect of a breakthrough this week.
The two allies announced a deal in late July under which South Korea would avoid the worst of American tariffs by agreeing to pump $US350 billion ($A531 billion) of new investments into the US.
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But talks about the structure of the investments are deadlocked.
Meeting South Korean president Lee Jae Myung at the nearby National Museum, Trump was presented with a gold crown and the “Grand Order of Mugunghwa”, the country’s highest decoration worn as an elaborate sash and medal.
“I’d like to wear it right now,” he said.
At the start of their working lunch, Lee pledged to spend more on defence – trying to head off a common Trump bugbear that allies are not pulling their weight.
He also requested the US allow South Korea to reprocess nuclear fuel to power submarines.
Seoul is prohibited from doing so without US consent under an agreement between the countries.
Trump pledged to help “straighten out” South Korea’s problems with its nuclear-armed northern neighbour.
The two Koreas are still technically at war after their 1950-53 war ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty.
Trump has made repeated calls to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his Asian trip. On Wednesday, he said the timings would not work out.
While skipping the main APEC summit, Trump plans bilateral meetings with several national leaders, including Xi, before he departs on Thursday.
Negotiators from the world’s top two economies hashed out a framework on Sunday for a deal to pause steeper American tariffs and Chinese rare earths export controls, US officials said.
The news sent stocks soaring to record peaks.
Trump said he would speak to Xi about Nvidia’s state-of-the-art Blackwell AI chips. Sales of those to China are a key sticking point in trade talks.
Trump’s trip to South Korea concludes a whirlwind swing through the region, among the hardest hit by his tariff policies and increased US-China competition.
In Malaysia, he announced trade agreements and oversaw the signing of an expanded truce between Thailand and Cambodia after a border conflict.
In Tokyo on Tuesday, Trump lavished praise on Japan’s first female Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, welcoming her pledge to accelerate a military buildup and signing deals on trade and rare earths.
-with AAP
