Obama reaffirms bond with Australia

Wayne Swan. Photo / Mark Mitchell

United States President Barack Obama has reaffirmed his country's commitment to a strong relationship with Australia during a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Wayne Swan on the sidelines of the G20 summit.

The meeting in Toronto on Sunday - at the start of the G20, which has been marred by scenes of violence involving the arrest of about 75 people - was an unexpected bonus for the new Labor leadership.

Australia was expected to fall off Obama's agenda when new Prime Minister Julia Gillard sent her deputy in her place.

The pair are believed to have discussed Obama's conversation with Gillard during a telephone call just hours after she was made 27th Prime Minister of Australia on Thursday.

Obama is understood to have told Swan he was looking forward to continuing the very good relationship that had developed between the allies.

They also discussed the importance of the G20 fiscal reforms, with the US President stressing the importance of getting people into work.

Australia scored a win when leaders from the world's biggest economies came to agreement on how to move forward post the financial meltdown.

The G20's closing statement adopts the view held by Australia and other better-performing nations that any solution needs to take account of different fiscal circumstances in each country.

Earlier, Swan reiterated solutions needed to be flexible enough to take account of the different ways countries emerged from the crisis.

Australia is not in favour of a global levy on banks being promoted by Britain, France and Germany.

"So in putting forward a solution, which the G20 must, it must recognise different circumstances in different countries," Swan said.

"The response needs to be much more nuanced now."

- AAP