Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese sidestepped calls to apologise on Tuesday after a clip emerged of him engaging in crude banter about a gift from his Japanese counterpart. But separate comments during that interview in which he joked about a gift from Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during her visit to Australia in May drew furore this week from his political opponents. During the conversation with host Nikki Osborne at his official residence, the Australian leader joked that he’d received a “strange” present of a Japanese royal melon from Takaichi. In Japan, premium melons are considered luxury items and can cost more than A$270 (US$190), according to Japan ’s former ambassador to Australia. When the host asked if she had smuggled the fruit through Australian customs, Albanese held his hands up and said “got a couple of melons”.