Former Australian PM Kevin Rudd appointed envoy to US

Former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd answers questions from media at a book promotion event during the Penn Wharton China Summit in University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the United States, April 14, 2018. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

SYDNEY – Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has been appointed Australia's next ambassador to the United States at a time when both countries are deepening security cooperation.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Rudd would bring significant experience to the role at a time when the region was being reshaped by strategic competition.

"Kevin Rudd is an outstanding appointment," said Albanese at a news conference on Tuesday.

Saying he was greatly honored, former prime minister Kevin Rudd reiterated the importance of the US alliance and highlighted his close personal ties with American business and political leaders after nearly a decade living and working in the country

"He brings a great deal of credit to Australia by agreeing to take up this position as a former prime minister, as a former foreign minister."

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Saying he was greatly honored, Rudd reiterated the importance of the US alliance and highlighted his close personal ties with American business and political leaders after nearly a decade living and working in the country.

"Our national interest continues to be served, as it has for decades past, by the deepest and most effective strategic engagement of the United States in our region," said Rudd in a statement.

Albanese said the appointment of Rudd, which follows the September appointment of former foreign minister Stephen Smith as ambassador to the United Kingdom, reflected the importance of the AUKUS nuclear submarine security deal between Australia, the UK and US.

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"It is no accident we are engaged in AUKUS and that those decisions require significant diplomatic but also of course a knowledge of the political structures that are in place," said Albanese.

Rudd will take up his post in early 2023.