Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has told former PM Kevin Rudd he is not suitable for the job of United Nations Secretary General.



Mr Turnbull phoned Mr Rudd around 11am on Friday to tell him he won't be receiving the nomination of the Australian government, part of the procedure.



"I do not want to add to his disappointment - but the threshold point here is when the Australian Government nominates a person for a job, particularly an international job like this, the threshold question is: Do we believe the person, the nominee, the would-be nominee is well suited for that position?" Mr Turnbull said.



"My judgement is that Mr Rudd is not, and I've explained to him the reasons why. I don't want to go into them here today."



Mr Rudd's reaction wasn't a happy one. He released a long statement thanking Foreign Minister Julie Bishop for her support in taking his request to Cabinet.

"It would have reflected well on what our nation can offer to the world - as a middle power with relationships across the world, including the developing world, smaller states, the Commonwealth, our Pacific Island friends and of course our partners in Asia.

A nomination by the government would not have granted Mr Rudd a position. It would simply have enabled him to stand alongside the 12 other candidates from across the world, and compete on his merits.

That is now not to be."

The decision was applauded by conservative Liberal backbencher Cory Bernardi who said it reflects the sentiments of a great many Australians.



"While seeking to advance Australia's stature on the world stage, we've got to do what's right, rather than what's politically expedient. The Prime Minister has done exactly that today" Senator Bernardi said in a statement.

Congratulations to the Prime Minister on his announcement today. @TurnbullMalcolm pic.twitter.com/lANrBSmhlR — Cory Bernardi (@corybernardi) July 29, 2016



But the argument from Ms Bishop in supporting his nomination, and that of the Labor party in ignoring their years of blood-letting over Mr Rudd, was that a former Australian prime minister vying for the top job in international diplomacy deserved his government's backing.



Lisa Sharland, Senior Analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, believes this decision will raise eyebrows internationally.

"It might be viewed as a little bit parochial in terms of Australia's engagement more broadly," Ms Sharland said.

She said that the UN articulated three qualities the were looking for.

"Proven leadership and managerial experience, that they had extensive experience in multilateral engagement and also that they had communication, diplomatic and multi-lingual skills.

"So I think on the basis of those figures and as the Foreign Minister pointed out a few days ago, a number of the other candidates nominated are former prime ministers and foreign ministers, I think it's going to lead a few to be confused as to why Prime Minister Turnbull didn't decide today to nominate Kevin Rudd."

In her view, the on-the-record criticism of Mr Rudd's style and temperament, mostly uttered by his own Labor colleagues, wouldn't play overseas, especially given his crucial push to get Australia on the Security Council.

"One of the things that’s worth while noting is this is a PM who recently put Australia forward for a Security Council seat, which it was successful in obtaining. Australia has just finished serving on that seat from 2013-2014.

"Australia received an incredible amount of feedback that it had done quite a reputable job as a non-permanent member. So Australia has quite a positive reputation when it comes to engaging within the UN system, particularly with the Security Council recently.

"So I think that’s going to add a little bit to the confusion when it comes to questioning why a former PM who had pursued quite an extensive multilateral agenda has been dismissed as a potential candidate," Ms Sharland said.

"Bit parochial." Senior Analyst at ASPI @LJSharland explains her views the government blocking Kevin Rudd for UNSGhttps://t.co/R5b1YXKKJX — Daniela Ritorto (@danielaritorto) July 29, 2016



ANU Law Professor Don Rothwell agreed.



"Look I very much doubt that any of those issues that have arisen in terms of Mr Rudd and his handling of staff in Australia would be seen as being particularly relevant for this type of selection criteria in New York", Professor Rothwell told SBS News.



"At face value Mr Rudd is immaculately qualified for the position. He's been prime minister of Australia twice, he's been a foreign minister, he's been a former diplomat. He ticks many many of the boxes."



Professor Rothwell says technically, there's nothing in the rules that requires one be nominated by their home country, just by a UN Member-State. So Mr Rudd could seek another country's blessing.

But Mr Rudd's declared it's over.



Most say even with the nomination he was a long shot anyway.



There are already 12 candidates, five of them women, the most high profile from our region is the former Labor prime minister of New Zealand Helen Clark, who heads the UN's Development Programme



Despite calls for the next Secretary-General to be a woman and/or from Eastern Europe, after one round of internal secret ballots it's understood the front-runner is the former prime minister of Portugal, Antonio Gueterres, who has also served as former UN High Commissioner for Refugees



Mr Turnbull is yet to declare who Australia will support in the race, but ultimately, the five nations that hold a veto on the Security Council - the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China - will have the final decision on who replaces the long-serving Ban-Ki Moon next year.



