Former prime minister Kevin Rudd has asked the Turnbull government to endorse his nomination for United Nations Secretary-General.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop confirmed his request ahead of the first gathering of Liberal MPs since the federal election.
"As the prime minister has indicated on a number of occasions that will be a matter for the cabinet," she told Sky News on Monday.
Mr Rudd has been openly canvassing global and domestic support for his candidacy for some time and the fraught matter of whether to back him will now go before cabinet, with various government figures understood to be cautious about throwing their support behind the former Labor leader.
"Kevin Rudd has requested that the Australian government nominate him and as [Malcolm Turnbull] has indicated on a number of occasions that will be a matter for the cabinet," Ms Bishop told Sky News.
Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said in April that Mr Rudd was behaving like a pest, and should take up a more normal retirement hobby "and play golf or buy a caravan".
"Kevin was never happy just running Australia. He believed he was always destined to run the world," Mr Dutton said. "Kevin's ego makes Donald Trump's look like a rounding error."
Candidates must be nominated by their governments. There are 12 people in the race, including former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark, former UN climate chief Christina Figueres and several candidates from Eastern Europe, which is due for a stint in the leadership role.
