Anthony Albanese has confirmed that Ambassador Kevin Rudd has met with Donald Trump

Australia’s ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, told the president-elect that he and Foreign Minister Penny Wong were looking forward to attending his inauguration.

Australia’s Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd has met with president-elect Donald Trump. Picture: Supplied

Kevin Rudd met with Donald Trump “in recent times” ahead of the president-elect’s second inauguration, Anthony Albanese has confirmed.

The Prime Minister has come under increasing pressure from the Coalition over “inaction” in dealing with Mr Trump since his November election win, while there have also been concerns over Mr Rudd’s past attacks against the incoming president.

After confirming earlier this week he had invited Mr Trump to Australia in their first phone call the day after the US election, the Prime Minister on Friday said Mr Rudd and the president-elect had made “direct contact”.

“That is a good thing,” he told ABC radio.

“Kevin Rudd has been very active developing relationships with the new administration, and I am very confident Australia is showing the importance we place in the United States relationship by having a former prime minister as our ambassador.”

The Australian understands Mr Rudd had a brief meeting with Mr Trump at the Trump International Golf Course.

Mr Rudd told the president-elect that he and Foreign Minister Penny Wong looked forward to attending his inauguration, which will take place on Monday in Washington DC, and conveyed the Prime Minister’s good wishes.

Mr Albanese did not say when the meeting took place, other than it occurred in “recent times”, or the location of the engagement, which was later confirmed by his office.

While it was suggested it was the pair’s first face-to-face meeting, that was not confirmed by the Albanese government.

“We engage diplomatically, rather than go into those details. That’s how we get things done, that’s how you do diplomacy and that’s how you get results,” Mr Albanese said.

In an interview on UK TV station GB News with Nigel Farage in March last year, Mr Trump sparked headlines when he called Mr Rudd “not the brightest bulb” and said he had heard he was “a little bit nasty”.

Donald Trump savaged Rudd in interview.

Mr Trump was responding to questions about Mr Rudd’s tweets in which he called the then president “the most destructive president in US history”.

Mr Trump said in that interview: “If he’s at all hostile, he will not be there long”.

Following Mr Trump’s election, Mr Rudd deleted the tweets.

“The ambassador has to have a functional working relationship with the administration, whether that’s a Democrat or Republican administration,” Peter Dutton said in November.

A Trump aide, Dan Scavino, posted a GIF of an hourglass in response to Mr Rudd’s congratulatory message – widely accepted as a message that Mr Rudd’s time was running out.

Most recently, former foreign minister Julie Bishop cast doubt on how long the ambassador would retain the position when she said to “watch this space”.

Mr Albanese backed in his pick for Ambassador to the US on Friday, saying he was “confident” Australia had the right diplomatic representation in place to manage the relationship with Mr Trump.

“I’m focused on Australia’s interests and so are Australia’s diplomatic representatives, including our Ambassador to the United States,” the Prime Minister said.

“I had a great discussion with President-elect Trump immediately after his election. I’ll continue to engage in Australia’s national interest. I note that Penny Wong is one of the few representatives of foreign governments who will attend the inauguration along with other foreign ministers from Quad countries. I think that’s a very good thing.”