‘Heat and light’: The challenge facing Kevin Rudd’s successor
Greg Moriarty is set to take over as US ambassador at a complex time for both geopolitics and Australia’s most important alliance.
Kevin Rudd’s stint in Washington was initially set to be cut short on 31 March. Eleven days later, and for an undisclosed period, he remains in the post while his successor prepares to take the reins.
Regardless of when Rudd's short-term extension ends, when Greg Moriarty walks through the Australian embassy’s door later in the coming month, he’ll also be walking into one of the most complex jobs in Australian diplomacy.
A four-minute drive down 16th Street is the White House, where US President Donald Trump is commanding a Middle East war that is upending global energy markets and fraying the international order Australia has long relied on.
Moriarty will be tasked with managing the daily turbulence from Trump’s White House while keeping the AUKUS pact in the air.
