EDITORIAL: PM must rip Band-Aid off and meet with Americans

It is an unfortunate fact of life that some world leaders are people you’d prefer not to invite round for a cuppa, if given the option.

But, if you happen to be the prime minister and those unsavoury characters are in charge of important allies and trading partners, you need to put those personal feelings to the side.

That’s something Anthony Albanese has demonstrated he is capable of doing.

Take for example, Mr Albanese’s relationship with his “good friend” Prabowo Subianto.

Prior to his “cuddly grandpa” extreme makeover which was instrumental in his election as Indonesian President, Prabowo was a notorious army general with a bloody past, alleged to have accused human rights abuses and ordered massacres.

That hasn’t stood in the way of the pair’s diplomatic bromance. They even exchanged gifts for their pets, with Mr Albanese gifting Prabowo’s Instagram-famous cat Bobby Kertanegara a bandana embossed with “Australia (heart) Indonesia”.

Then there’s Xi Jinping. Under his repressive rule, the Chinese Government has continued its human rights abuses against Tibetan and Uyghur minorities, as well as stepped up its aggression against the West.

Yet Mr Albanese is planning to jet off to Beijing later this month if a meeting with President Xi can be locked in.

If it goes ahead, it would be the fourth time Mr Albanese has met with the leader of Australia’s No. 1 trading partner.

Contrast that with the Prime Minister’s dealings with the leader of the United States, our most significant military ally and key sources of foreign investment.

Mr Albanese is yet to so much as shake the US President’s hand.

It is a situation which has tipped over into the absurd.

That Mr Albanese’s pride was injured when Donald Trump stood him up at last month’s G7 summit in Canada to deal with the unfolding crisis in the Middle East is understandable. The PM learnt he wouldn’t be meeting with the President via social media. He had just finished telling the media that he had prepared extensively for the tete-a-tete. Oof.

But now it’s time to get over it.

Rip the Band-Aid off. Get on a plane, shake the US President’s hand and engage with him on behalf of the Australian people.

Like him or not — and many do not — Australia’s security and economic prosperity is dependent on a successful relationship with the US, and that means we need to have a relationship with its leader.

It’s a diplomatic dance that other nations have managed to navigate.

But Mr Albanese appears to believe that making the effort to meet with the Americans result in a loss of face.

Certainly under the current administration, the US become more bellicose in their demands of other nations, including Australia.

That is all the more reason Mr Albanese needs to make a greater effort to meet with his counterpart in Washington. Not to indulge or to pander to bullying. But to state our case, to engage. To stand up and lead.

Responsibility for the editorial comment is taken by the Editor-in-Chief Christopher Dore.