MOSCOW: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, fresh off his reelection victory, on Monday announced that he plans to embark on diplomatic visits to Indonesia, Malaysia, and Canada in the coming weeks.
“My first international visit will be just like last time [and] my first bilateral was to Indonesia… That was something that President Prabowo and I had discussed before. It’s something I intend to do,“ Albanese told reporters, as quoted by the ABC News broadcaster, reported Sputnik/ RIA Novosti.
The Australian leader also accepted an invitation from Canadian Prime Minister Marc Carney to attend the G7 leaders’ summit in Alberta this June. Observers note this could facilitate an in-person meeting with US President Donald Trump.
Albanese revealed he had already held a “very warm” congratulatory phone call with US President Donald Trump, during which they discussed AUKUS and tariffs.
Earlier the day, The Australian newspaper reported that the reelected prime minister also plans to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit, which will be held on May 26-27 in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.
It is expected that in September, the head of the Australian government will travel to Papua New Guinea to celebrate the 50th anniversary of independence of this country.
Australia held parliamentary elections on Saturday. According to the latest election commission data, the ruling Labor Party won 87 out of 150 seats in the House of Representatives, the lower house of parliament, allowing Albanese to once again take the post of prime minister and form a new government with members of his faction.
The leader of Australia’s Liberal-National Coalition, Peter Dutton, admitted the opposition’s defeat and congratulated Albanese on his victory.
