On CNBC's Squawk Box on December 5, 2016, Kevin Rudd discussed President-elect Donald Trump's phone call with Taiwan's leader Tsai Ing-wen, which overturned decades of U.S. diplomatic practice. Rudd advised that "everyone should take a deep breath," as "this is not the beginning and the end of the U.S.-China relationship." Noting that the Chinese reaction has been "fairly moderate" thus far, he argued that China would likely respond with "strategic patience." We need to wait and see "how does candidate Trump translate into transition Trump into President Trump," Rudd said. 

According to Rudd, the primary challenge in the region for President Trump will be getting the Chinese to address the North Korean nuclear program. Rudd believes that "everything else can be managed with some shouting and screaming, publicly or privately." For Rudd, "the real serious problem is this regime in Pyongyang with nuclear weapons programs [that are] highly developed, infinitely more developed than we had with Iran, and how does the Trump administration leverage the Chinese to get an outcome there, short of conflict. (2 min., 30 sec.)

Watch the video on CNBC.