Australia’s opposition leader said he will make his first foreign visit to the US to meet with President Donald Trump if he wins the forthcoming election, arguing the longstanding allies must deepen their relationship despite simmering tensions with the new administration.

Center-right Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton said he would be better placed to engage with the Trump administration than current Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, reiterating that the US is still Australia’s “most important” partner.

“I will always prioritize Australia’s interests if I am prime minister. And here’s the important point — the US and Australia’s pursuit of national interests is not mutually exclusive,” he said in a speech on Thursday to the Lowy Institute think tank.

Albanese’s first visit after coming to power in May 2022 was to Indonesia, and the prime minister is yet to meet with Trump.

Australia’s election campaign is expected to begin in coming weeks as a vote must be held by May 17. The center-left Labor government is struggling to maintain support following a period of high inflation and elevated interest rates, with recent polls showing the two major parties almost neck-and-neck, although Albanese’s standing has risen recently.

Looming over the contest is Trump and his recent decision to impose tariffs on US imports of steel and aluminum that will impact Australia, after the president decided against providing Canberra with an exemption. A poll by Redbridge released in March before the tariff decision found just 23% of Australians had a positive view of Trump.

Dutton said he didn’t support the Trump administration’s broad withdrawal of foreign aid via cuts to USAID. The opposition leader said it was up to Australia to identify individual programs that would benefit from reinstatement and communicate this to Washington.

“It’s not just about the money or the program,” he said. “I don’t agree with some of the funding that they’ve withdrawn and I think it is detrimental to the collective interests in the region.”