Scott Morrison wins high praise from President Donald Trump at Buenos Aires G20 summit
Scott Morrison has met US President Donald Trump at the G20 summit in Argentina - winning a glowing endorsement for doing ‘a very good job in a very short period of time’.
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US President Donald Trump has backed Scott Morrison’s prime ministership claiming he was given the top job because he was willing to do what Australians wanted.
The endorsement came on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina where the pair met on Friday afternoon, despite an initial snub from the White House.
Mr Trump said he was anticipating having a “fantastic relationship” with Mr Morrison. “We are just getting to know each other” Mr Trump told reporters.
“So far so good.”
“I know you’ve done a very good job in a very short period of time,” Mr Trump said.
“You’ve done a lot of things that they’ve wanted to be done, that’s why you’re sitting right here.”
Looking forward to meeting with President Trump later today in Buenos Aires at the G20. We both know that a strong economy and national security is the foundation for everything else. pic.twitter.com/QAkdEMqKSy
— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) November 30, 2018
MORE G20: Trump passes on chance to meet ScoMo
MORE G20: Trump cancels meeting with Putin
The two leaders held talks on the first day of the meetings between the leaders of the 20 biggest economies.
Earlier in the day, Mr Morrison did his best to avoid Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul on 2 October. But the Crown Prince wasn’t shunned by everyone with Russian President Vladimir Putin high-fiving and laughing with the Crown Prince on the sidelines of the summit.
In the official leaders photo, Mr Morrison was standing near both Mr Putin and the Crown Prince but avoided chatting to the controversial pair. Instead he opted to chat with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
On Friday, Mr Morrison also met with French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazil’s President Michel Temer.
He also scheduled a meeting with representatives from the European Union to try and advance post-brexit free trade discussions.
Trade tensions have dominated talks between global leaders on the first day of the summit.
During the summit the Prime Minister also plans to meet Angel Gurria, the secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), who has warned about the ongoing trade stoush between China and the US.
World leaders are expected to try and encourage the two superpowers to back down from their escalating trade war, as fears mount that it could damage financial markets. Shortly after arriving in South America on Thursday night, Mr Morrison said he came to the G20 as an optimist.
“Australia has always been a successful trading nation and that’s how we’ll continue to ensure the prosperity for our people,” he told reporters.
“It’s not just for our people, all of the G20 have all benefited so significantly by the exchanges in trade with each other and we all want to see that continue.”
“I believe both China and the United States are both very keen to see a more open trading environment around the world...particularly between these two nations and we all benefit from that.”
In a dramatic twist, Donald Trump cancelled his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, after a Russian attack on three Ukrainian naval last week.
The cancellation allowed Mr Trump time to meet with Mr Morrison.
Tonight Mr Morrison will join the 19 other leaders, including India’s Narendra Modi, Germany’s Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin and British Prime Minister Theresa May for a South American cultural performance.