Not everyone, it seems, got the memo on time.
Gift that keeps on giving
The world might be on fire right now, but international diplomacy retains some of its quainter rituals that hark back to a simpler time – the official gift exchange between leaders.
So when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney ahead of the G7 summit in Calgary this week, the gift-giving attracted almost as much publicity as the diplomacy.
Carney, Britain’s former Bank of England governor, is now prime minister of Canada (how’s that for a career plot twist?), having reversed near certain defeat of his party after Justin Trudeau outstayed his welcome.
Albanese presented Carney with an Akubra (we feel Uggs would have been more thoughtful for the Canadian winter). But that’s not all. The PM also handed over framed memorabilia from the film Gallipoli, given up by the National Film and Sound Archives of Australia.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks to his Canadian counterpart at a meeting ahead of the G7 summit this week.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
“Prime Minister Carney’s favourite movie of all time is Gallipoli,” an official briefing archly noted.
The 1981 Peter Weir-David Williamson filmic monument to the Anzac legend wasn’t what we’d expect to strike a chord with a nerdy Canadian economist, but there you go. It led us to wonder what would Albanese’s favourite film be in a moment of gifting reciprocity? Jesus of Montreal? I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing? Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure?
In return, Carney presented Albanese with a Stetson – a neat synergy.
But then Canada’s 24th prime minister rather put ours to shame, presenting his down under counterpart with a cold cast bronze sculpture of a Summit bear, which will no doubt look right at home in Marrickville.
The cast was by sculptor Roy Hinz, described locally as an “avid outdoorsman with a keen eye for nature’s ways”, which strikes us as not very Albo. In contrast, former US President Joe Biden’s scored a direct hit in the gifting stakes with a $11,500 record player, a homage to his “DJ Albo” days.
The PM is set to meet the Orange One this week. Perhaps he can give him an economics 101 textbook.
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