US President Donald Trump has delayed the confirmation hearing of Admiral Harry Harris as Australian ambassador just hours before it was scheduled.
Harris’s nomination who is a highly decorated Naval commander was seen as a sign of the strength of the US-Australia relationship.
However it now appears likely Harris will be parachuted into the role of US envoy to South Korea disappointing Australia who has been without a US ambassador since Trump’s election in 2016.
The backflip continues the Trump administration focusing its efforts on the Korean peninsula ahead of the proposed meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and Mr Trump.