By Ben McKay in Nuku’alofa

Anthony Albanese is heading home from the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting despite a hot mic brouhaha which took the shine off landing his Pacific Policing Initiative.

The prime minister spent fewer than 48 hours on the ground in Tonga for this year’s annual summit of Pacific leaders.

In that time he was able to gain regional support for his new Pacific police force, the PPI, meet several leaders, and attend the retreat on the stunning Vava’u island.

Sandwiched in between was an uncomfortable airing of a conversation with US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell.

“We had a cracker today getting the Pacific Policing Initiative through. It’s so important. It will make such a difference,” Mr Albanese said in the video, published by a New Zealand journalist.

Mr Campbell replies: “It’s great… I talked to Kevin about it and we were going to do something and he asked us not to, so we did not. We’ve given you the lane, so take the lane.”

“You can go us halvies on the cost if you like. It will only cost you a bit,” Mr Albanese replied.

The video is significant as it suggests Australia is acting on Pacific policing either in co-ordination with the US, or after US efforts failed.

Nations across the Pacific hold different geopolitical positions – from firm allies of the US like Australia, to warmer relations with Beijing like the Solomon Islands.

The Australian prime minister – and privately, many diplomats – were plainly displeased by what it revealed.

“Kurt Campbell’s a mate of mine. It’s us having a chat,” Mr Albanese said.

Mr Campbell is an architect of AUKUS, the trilateral pact with the US and UK that will see Australia obtain nuclear-powered submarines.

Mr Albanese denied Mr Campbell’s suggestion the US had plans for their own Pacific police force, or that the “Kevin” was a reference to Kevin Rudd – now Australia’s ambassador to the US – who talked him down.

“He didn’t say that. He didn’t say that,” he insisted.

“He said he’d had a discussion with Kevin about it … chill out people.”

The journalist was accredited and allowed to be in the forum where the video was taken, but Mr Albanese attacked her for behaving inappropriately.

“It’s up to them, to whoever did that, to think about their own ethics when it comes to journalism,” he said.

“People are coming up behind, trying to try and take conversations … I myself, if I were a journalist, I would not do that.”

Radio NZ Chief News Officer Mark Stevens said “RNZ stands by its reporter and its reporting”.

“There is nothing to suggest they acted unethically or outside of our rigorous editorial policies,” he said.

New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Luxon – who is pulling his nation’s foreign policy closer to the US – also met with Dr Campbell in Tonga.

Australia is spending $400 million to set up the multi-national police force, which will have the capacity to deploy across the region during strife or major events.

It will also include a co-ordination hub in Brisbane and “centres of excellence” in Papua New Guinea and up to three further Pacific cities.

It is not uncontentious.

Melanesian officials, including Solomon Islands diplomat Collin Beck and Papua New Guinean official Leonard Louma, have both offered guarded criticism prior to its announcement.

The policing initiative is widely seen as an attempt to keep Chinese security and police out of the region under the forum’s “by Pacific, for Pacific” mantra.