The newest US ambassador to Australia has hit the headlines on his first day on the job after he called out a reporter for talking about a woman in the press pack.
Caroline Kennedy, daughter of former US President John F Kennedy, opened her term in Australia with a speech focusing on Pacific relations and the renewed US focus on the region.
But it was during the question-and-answer session afterward that things got a little awkward.
Caroline Kennedy, new US ambassador to Australia. (Brooke Mitchell)
As reporters scrambled to answer their questions, Kennedy, 64, bristled at Channel 10’s Hugh Riminton.
“Did you just talk about the woman?” she said
“Well, she started first.”
Riminton later joked that it was as if the director had “touched” her, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Caroline Kennedy is the daughter of former US President John F Kennedy. (Supplied)
The rest of Kennedy’s press conference was much more traditional, as he talked about the US’s return to the region.
“For me personally, it’s of great significance as my father served in the Pacific and was rescued by two Solomon Islanders and an Australian coast guard,” he said.
“And that’s the critical area in the region and I think the US needs to do more. We’re putting our embassies back in. And the Peace Corps is coming in and USAID is coming back.
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“And fortunately, we’ll be back. It’s been a while since we’ve been there, but I think all of this is tremendously positive. And I think the US and Australia working together will have a big impact.”
Kennedy is only the second woman appointed as US ambassador to Australia, following Genta H Holmes from 1997 to 2000.
The most recent ambassador to the United States, Arthur B Culvahouse Jr, finished his term in January 2021, meaning it has been about a year and a half since an official ambassador was in residence.