The prime minister has doubled down on defending controversial comments and hand gestures he made about “melons”, saying they have been misinterpreted.
In an interview on the Bush Deep podcast with comedian Nikki Osborne, which aired in July, Anthony Albanese said Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had gifted him two crown melons during a May visit to Australia.
“She brought two and they’re beautiful,” he said while making a gesture with both hands in front of his chest.
He has repeatedly rejected calls to apologise over the incident this week.
On Friday, Mr Albanese said the interpretation of the melon comments was incorrect.
“When I give interviews, anyone who has sat down with me … will see that I don’t do them with my my arms crossed,” he told reporters in Canberra.
“The interpretation that some have put on this is simply not correct, and the Japanese ambassador has made that clear as well.
“I’m responsible for my words, and I note that of all of the words that have been written on this, none of my words have been criticised.”
In the same podcast, Mr Albanese came under fire for agreeing he would “shag” Australian popstar Kylie Minogue.
He apologised for the remarks shortly after the podcast went live.
But the prime minister said it was still appropriate to do interviews on podcasts.
“I do a range of interviews, including, one with Ozzy Man Reviews, who puts words into his videos for animals that are engaging with each other,” he said.
“In modern media, I talk to a range of people, many of whom I don’t agree with everything that they say.”
Coverage of the podcast comments prompted a letter from Tokyo to Canberra, which said there had been ”sensationalised reporting in the Australian media” about the interview and no action would be taken by the Japanese government.
The letter was leaked to several media outlets, prompting the coalition to refer the matter to the Australian Federal Police, which Mr Albanese dismissed as a political stunt.
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