Australia's US ambassador Rudd to step down early after tensions with Trump

Swati Pandey, Bloomberg News on Jan 12, 2026

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Australia’s ambassador to the U.S., Kevin Rudd, will step down a year earlier than planned after his tenure was clouded by past criticism of Donald Trump that had drawn the ire of the U.S. president.

A successor has not yet been named, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday, and will be announced in “due course.” Rudd will leave his post at the end of March and take up a role as global president of the Asia Society, working between New York and Washington.

Rudd’s departure comes as Australia seeks to expand cooperation on critical minerals and trade with the U.S., even as ideological and policy differences — including Trump’s unpredictability and tariffs — continue to test the relationship.

Rudd’s ambassadorship became a point of friction after Trump returned to the White House in 2025, reviving attention to public criticism Rudd made before his 2023 appointment, including a February 2022 social media post calling Trump a “traitor to the West.”

The strain surfaced publicly during Albanese’s first in-person meeting with Trump in October, who recalled those remarks and told Rudd, “I don’t like you and I probably never will.”

The exchange briefly overshadowed talks on defense and economic cooperation, forcing Albanese to bat away criticism and questions about whether Rudd was fit for the role.

In 2024, before taking office, Trump said Rudd is “not the brightest bulb” and warned he was unlikely to remain in the role if he proved “hostile” to a second Trump administration.

During his tenure, Rudd, a former Australian prime minister, worked to strengthen strategic cooperation, including securing continued support for the Aukus nuclear submarine pact and advancing agreements on critical minerals and AI.