President Trump pledged a close relationship with Australia’s new prime minister during a phone call Friday, according to a White House readout of the call.
The White House issued a statement Saturday stating that Trump had congratulated Australia’s new prime minister, Scott Morrison, for his recent win, adding that the two would continue to “closely cooperate on priorities the two countries share.”
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Readouts of Trump’s calls with foreign leaders have been released sparsely since the White House announced last month it would stop publishing summaries of some of the president’s conversations.
Trump’s call with Morrison follows a congratulatory tweet from the president Friday night. Morrison won the prime minister’s position this week after ousting Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
“Congratulations to new Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. There are no greater friends than the United States and Australia!” he wrote.
Morrison won a party vote this week to secure the prime minister’s job, defeating the leader of the movement to oust Turnbull, former Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, by a margin of 45-40.
Trump met with Turnbull at the White House earlier this year. The two began their relationship on a tense note last year following Trump’s inauguration.
Trump and Turnbull famously clashed over a phone call, in which Trump told Turnbull that their conversation was the most “unpleasant” he had with a foreign leader since taking the White House.
“I have had it,” Trump told his Australian counterpart during the call, according to a transcript reported later by The Washington Post. “I have been making these calls all day, and this is the most unpleasant call all day.”