Prime Minister Anthony Albanese fails to secure meeting with US President Donald Trump after Palestine call

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has failed to secure a bilateral meeting with the US president during his visit to the UN General Assembly in New York.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Tuesday, Australian time, that the US president would hold bilateral meetings with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen.

But no meeting with Mr Albanese is planned, leaving the Prime Minister to compete for face time at a reception hosted by Mr Trump, attended by dozens of other world leaders.

Mr Trump will also meet Argentina’s president Javier Milei, and hold multilateral meetings with the leaders of Pakistan, Indonesia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Australian officials had downplayed the prospect of a meeting with Mr Trump while Mr Albanese is in the US this week. The pair had been due to meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Canada in June but Mr Trump returned to Washington a day early to manage the Middle East war.

A White House meeting had been mooted but Mr Trump’s schedule was shortened by the memorial service for assassinated political activist Charlie Kirk in Arizona on Sunday.

Mr Albanese said he would speak to Mr Trump at the reception hosted by the US president and First Lady Melania Trump on Wednesday night, local time. His partner, Jodie Haydon, will also attend.

“I’ll be talking with him there,” Mr Albanese told Sunrise this week.

Last week he said: “We will meet when we meet.”

Mr Albanese has also indicated a possible sit-down with the US leader at the APEC summit in South Korea in October.

Mr Trump is due to fly back to Washington after the reception. He will host Turkish president Recep Erdogan at the White House later this week.

The White House has criticised Australia and other countries recognising Palestinian statehood at the UN.

“The President has been very clear: he disagrees with this decision,” Ms Leavitt said.

“He feels this does not do anything to release the hostages, which is the primary goal right now in Gaza.”

She said recognition did nothing to help end the war.

“Frankly, he believes it’s a reward to Hamas. He believes these decisions are just more talk and not enough action from some of our friends and allies.”

Mr Albanese is preparing to address a special conference on the two-state solution at the UN headquarters, hosted by French president Emmanuel Macron.

Australia formally recognised Palestine on Sunday, prompting a furious response from Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

He will tell the conference that “continued illegal expansion of settlements on the West Bank” and associated settler violence must stop. The Prime Minister will warn threats to annex parts of Palestine and permanently displace Palestinians could end any chance at peace.

“Such conduct risks putting a two state solution beyond reach,” Mr Albanese will say.