Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has thanked outgoing National Party leader Barnaby Joyce for his service, but would not say if he has spoken personally with the deputy prime minister following his decision to quit the frontbench.
"Barnaby has resigned as deputy prime minister effective eight o’clock on Monday morning," the prime minister told reporters outside Blair House, the president's official guest residence, in Washington DC.
"I think he's taken the right decision, the judgement that he's made in resigning is the right one for himself and his family.
"I want to thank him for his service as a minister, as deputy prime minister over our years in government."
Mr Joyce will stay on as the Member for New England, confirming his former media advisor, Vikki Campion, is expecting to give birth to their child in April.
"He has personal issues that he has to address and he feels that he cannot do that from the despatch box," Mr Turnbull said.
The prime minister did not believe the extraordinary press conference where he called on his deputy "to consider his own position" forced Mr Joyce from office, and had created bad blood within the Coalition.
"Barnaby made his own decision to take leave to reflect on the circumstances and deal with personal matters," Mr Turnbull said.
"I want to say that the Coalition between the National Party and the Liberal Party is strong and enduring.
"The issues that have been the subject of discussion over the past two weeks have not been issues between Nationals and Liberals, we have a 95-year-old political alliance, the longest in Australian history, and it is absolutely enduring.
"The issues have related to Barnaby and certain issues relating to his conduct.
"I look forward to obviously working now with the new leader of the National Party who will be elected on Monday."
The prime minister would not say if he believed Mr Joyce should have stood down sooner or if the pair had spoken since he announced his intention to resign.
"He's made his decision to resign and I have a letter from him to that effect and, again, I thank him for his service as a minister and look forward to working with his successor," Mr Turnbull said.
The prime minister met privately with President Trump in the Oval Office on Friday.
Mr Turnbull will then return to Canberra in time for Nationals MPs and senators to elect their new leader on Monday morning, triggering the Coalition's sixth reshuffle since he became prime minister.
