Meetings in President Trump’s Oval Office are rarely dull affairs.

And this week’s visit by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, after months of diplomatic waiting, promises to be one of the most fascinating encounters of his tenure.

Trump and his administration are riding high after brokering a genuinely historic peace deal in Gaza: an agreement that has, for the first time in decades, brought an uneasy but promising calm to one of the world’s most combustible regions.

It’s against that backdrop that Mr Albanese will finally step into the Oval Office overnight, more than 250 days after taking office - a far longer wait than the 82-day average for his predecessors.

The timing alone speaks volumes.

Trump is in full command of the global stage, basking in the glow of diplomatic success and

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