Australia's Rudd faces crisis as defense chief quits

CANBERRA: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd faced his first political crisis since taking office when his defense minister resigned yesterday over travel and lobbying activities involving family and friends.

The development is a blow to Rudd, as outgoing Defense Minister Joel Fitzgibbon was a factional supporter and senior minister from the most populous New South Wales state, a key to winning national elections.

While the controversy surrounding Fitzgibbon, who was portrayed as politically clumsy, had led to a series of damaging headlines, analyst Nick Economou said his resignation would allow Rudd to draw a line under the affair and so keep open the option of an early election in late 2009 or early 2010.