Pratt could be called to give evidence against Trump

Mr Pratt discussed with 45 people in emails and conversations what Mr Trump had told him, including three former Australian prime ministers, 10 Australian officials, six journalists and 11 Pratt Industries employees, the report said.

Former prime ministers Paul Keating and Tony Abbott told AFR Weekend that Mr Pratt had not discussed submarines with them.

Asked if the Albanese government was alarmed over Mr Trump sharing secret information, Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said it was inappropriate to comment on US domestic matters.

Investigators spoke to Mr Pratt as part of their probe into claims Mr Trump had illegally retained classified documents after leaving the White House. The documents included information about nuclear weapons, spy satellites and the US military, with some boxes stored in bathrooms next to a toilet.

Mr Pratt told investigators he wasn’t sure if Mr Trump was being honest or exaggerating the truth, but investigators asked him not to repeat the information, the report said. Mr Pratt said he had relayed the conversation to Australian officials to demonstrate how he was advocating for Australia’s interests.

Coincidentally, at the time of the alleged meeting, secret negotiations over the AUKUS pact were reaching a crescendo, with Australia officially raising the acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines with the White House later that month.

In 2019, Mr Pratt hosted Mr Trump and then-prime minister Scott Morrison at his Ohio box factory, lavishing praise on the then-US president at an event that became a campaign-style rally. But according to the report, Mr Pratt told investigators he supports the Biden administration and tends to just “side with the king”.

While Mr Pratt is a foreign national, the encounter is not included among the 40 charges special counsel Jack Smith has hit Mr Trump with. Mr Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The New York Times said Mr Pratt was now among 80 potential witnesses who could be called to testify in Mr Trump’s trial to bolster the prosecution case that the former president was cavalier in handling classified information.

Former Australian ambassador to the US Joe Hockey said if all that Mr Trump discussed was as reported, it was information the Australian government would already know.

“We’ve had submariners serving on US nuclear submarines for years,” he said. “I find it hard to believe that in a conversation between Anthony Pratt and Donald Trump, anything of great significance was discussed that would have an impact on the national security of either Australia or the US.”

Former Defence Department official Peter Jennings said the submarine information could be found in the public domain, but the case showed how the former president lacked discipline when it came to national security.

“It’s just the 1000th example of why Trump is unfit to be president,” he said.

Mr Trump lashed out over the ABC News report, with a spokesman saying “illegal leaks are coming from sources which totally lack proper context and relevant information”.

“The Department of Justice should investigate the criminal leaking, instead of perpetrating their baseless witch-hunts while knowing that Trump did nothing wrong, has always insisted on truth and transparency, and acted in a proper manner, according to the law,” the spokesman said.