Malcolm Turnbull torpedoes talks over Trump’s tariffs with TV blast

Australia’s hopes of an exemption from Donald Trump’s steel and aluminium tariffs have been dealt a blow after the US President lashed Malcolm Turnbull - who won a carve-out from Trump’s first-term levies - as a ‘weak and ­ineffective leader’.

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Australia’s hopes of securing an exemption from Donald Trump’s steel and aluminium tariffs this week have been dealt a blow after the US President lashed ­Malcolm Turnbull – who won a carve-out from Mr Trump’s first-term tariffs – as a “weak and ­ineffective leader”.

The withering attack on the former prime minister came after Australia’s ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd, failed to make headway in last-ditch talks with the Trump administration on a hoped-for waiver.

Trade Minister Don Farrell on Monday ruled out an eleventh-hour trip to Washington to press Australia’s case as Anthony Albanese discussed contingency plans with the nation’s steel and aluminium producers.

The attack on Mr Turnbull came after the former prime minister warned the President’s abuse of the US’s closest allies was ­providing “an opportunity” for China’s President Xi Jinping.

In a post on his Truth Social network, Mr Trump wrote: ­“Malcolm Turnbull, the former Prime Minister of Australia who was always leading that wonderful country from ‘behind,’ never understood what was going on in China, nor did he have the ­capacity to do so. I always thought he was a weak and ineffective ­leader and, obviously, Australian’s (sic) agreed with me!!!”

Donald Trump hosting Malcolm Turnbull at the White House during his first term. Picture: Nathan Edwards

Mr Turnbull had earlier told Bloomberg television that Mr Trump risked a recession with his tariff agenda and he expected Mr Xi to take “massive advantage” of his presidency.

“Where Trump is chaotic, he will be consistent. Where Trump is rude and abusive, he’ll be respectful. Where Trump is erratic, he will be consistent,” the former prime minister said.

Mr Turnbull also said the world was seeing a “more undiluted Trump second time round”.

Responding to Mr Trump’s ­attack, Mr Turnbull told the ABC’s 7.30 the President was a bully who wanted people to suck up to him.

“Are we just going to become just a conga line of sycophants creeping through the White House, paying homage to this guy and telling him he’s a genius? It’s ludicrous,” he said.

Senator Farrell said Dr Rudd had been ­unable to achieve a breakthrough in a Saturday meeting with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, though it remained unclear whether Australian exporters would be hit when details of the tariffs plan were ­unveiled on Thursday (AEDT).

“They’re continuing to engage in discussions. Hopefully we get a satisfactory outcome,” he said.

Senator Farrell said while Australian officials would continue to press the nation’s case, he was not planning a last-ditch trip to the US to try to sway the outcome.

“I certainly won’t be going in the next three days,” he said. “I’m watching intently what’s going to happen over the next three days and then we’ll make some decisions.”

In a phone call with the Prime Minister last month, Mr Trump pledged to give “great consideration” to Australia’s request for an exemption, acknowledging the US’s trade surplus with Australia.

But the government has grown nervous after comments by senior US officials, including the President’s trade adviser, Peter Nav­arro, who have accused Australia of dumping subsidised steel and aluminium on the US market.

Australia’s Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd, right, with Jim Chalmers, left, and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Picture: NewsWire

The Prime Minister said the government would continue to work with the Trump administration and Australian companies in the firing line, in an effort to avert the impost.

“We are partners with the ­United States through our free-trade agreement and will continue to advocate for Australia’s nat­ional interests,” Mr Albanese said. “And I’m engaging as well with Australian companies or based companies such as Rio Tinto and BlueScope to seek a positive outcome. It is in Australia’s interest, but it’s also in the economic interests of the United States for Australia to be exempted from tariffs that of course just increased prices for the purchaser of those goods.

“The United States enjoys a trade surplus with Australia and has done so since the Truman presidency.”

Opposition trade spokesman Kevin Hogan said if the government failed to win an exemption “they will have failed dismally in a critical task”.

He said Mr Albanese had “lacked the courage” to travel to Washington DC for face-to-face talks with Mr Trump, in contrast to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

Mr Hogan said Labor’s efforts fell short of those of the Coalition, pointing to the Turnbull government’s success in gaining an exemption to Mr Trump’s 2018 steel and aluminium tariffs.

“It was an even more favourable opportunity for this government to secure an exemption,” Mr Hogan said. “The US enjoys a substantial trade surplus with Australia, and we are investing heavily in US defence industry through AUKUS.”

Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive Andrew McKellar said the government had “tried every reasonable measure that they can”, and if Australia was unable to secure an exemption it was not for want of trying.

“There really has been a team Australia effort, from the Prime Minister down. So from that point of view, business and government have been absolutely on the same page,” Mr McKellar said.

Senator Farrell said Labor was ready to hit back if the ­Coalition tried to make political mileage from the tariff issue.

“They were the group that you know, left us with the $20bn worth of trade impediments with China, the last of which we managed to remove just before Christmas,” he said.

“Remember this: from the time that Trump originally announced the tariffs on steel and aluminium the last time, it was nine months before we got a formal exemption. And it took us three years to get everything back into China. These are not easy discussions. Countries are making decisions based on what they think is in their national interest. What we’ve got to do is make decisions that are based on our national interests. And our national interest right now is ensuring those tariffs don’t get applied.”

Senator Farrell had said he would travel to the US for talks with Mr Lutnick after his counterpart’s appointment was confirmed by the Senate, which happened about three weeks ago.

But the planned trip was sidelined by Senate estimates hearings in the last week of February, a US trip by Treasurer Jim Chalmers, and preparations for a now-deferred April election.

Labor and Liberal MPs reacted with confusion over Mr Trump’s attack on Mr Turnbull. Employment Minister Murray Watt said: “I don’t know what prompted this tweet from Donald Trump.”

Opposition Finance Minister Jane Hume said she couldn’t explain the attack but hoped that the current government was “able to do what Malcolm Turnbull did and secure those exemptions”.

The relationship between Mr Turnbull and Mr Trump has come under intense scrutiny since their first phone call in 2017, when the then-prime minister and the President had a heated disagreement over the resettlement in the US of refugees detained in Australia.

Mr Trump labelled the call his “worst by far” with world leaders that day, including Vladimir Putin.

Despite the early clash, Mr Turnbull negotiated exemptions for Australia from US tariffs after visiting the White House in early 2018.