THE US regards the Foreign Affairs Minister, Kevin Rudd, as an abrasive, impulsive ''control freak'' who presided over a series of foreign policy blunders during his time as prime minister, according to a series of secret diplomatic cables.

The scathing assessment, detailed in messages sent by the US embassy in Canberra to the secretaries of state Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton over several years, are among hundreds of US State Department cables relating to Australia obtained by WikiLeaks and made available exclusively to the Herald.

The meeting they did have ... George Bush welcomes Kevin Rudd to the G20 summit in Washington in November 2008.

''Rudd … undoubtedly believes that with his intellect, his six years as a diplomat in the 1980s and his five years as shadow foreign minister, he has the background and the ability to direct Australia's foreign policy. His performance so far, however, demonstrates that he does not have the staff or the experience to do the job properly,'' the embassy observed in November last year.

The cables show how initially favourable US impressions of Mr Rudd, described as ''a safe pair of hands'', were quickly replaced by criticism of his micro-management and mishandling of diplomacy as he focused on media opportunities.