Kevin Rudd has said another country offered to nominate him for the top job at the United Nations after the Turnbull government knocked back his bid.
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But the former prime minister said through his spokeswoman on Sunday that he ruled out the proposed nomination from the unnamed country after asking the Australian government its view and failing to receive a reply after more than six weeks.
"Following the decision by the Australian government, another government approached Mr Rudd to nominate him as a candidate for UN Secretary General," the spokeswoman said.
"Mr Rudd approached the Australian government more than six weeks ago asking if they would oppose such a nomination, were he to consider accepting it.
"He has received no reply, and as a result Mr Rudd has ruled out this proposed nomination."
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Mr Rudd did not need the Australian government's permission to accept the nomination of another country.
"Mr Rudd's decision about whether or not to accept the nomination of another country is entirely a matter for him and that nation," she said.
"The Australian government decided that it would not support Mr Rudd's nomination. However, it is not in a position to oppose the nomination by another country and it was therefore a moot point.
"If Mr Rudd had the support of another government, it is ridiculous for him to infer that he has not accepted the nomination for the role of UN Secretary General due to a lack of response from the Australian government."
Mr Rudd's spokeswoman did not say why he needed Australia's approval to accept the other country's nomination.
She also did not say which country had made the approach.
The Turnbull government famously rejected Mr Rudd's bid in July after a tortured internal debate that frequently spilled out into the public domain and ended with Mr Turnbull reportedly making a "captain's call" amid a Cabinet split on the issue.
Mr Rudd's spokeswoman on Sunday initially dismissed as "false" a report by the New York-based website Inner City Press that Mr Rudd had lined up another country's backing, insisting that Mr Rudd had "not approached any governments other than Australia".
She also said that "not agreed to any such proposal from another country".
But when asked by Fairfax Media whether any country had approached Mr Rudd, she said in a statement via email that a country had indeed.
She said nominations by countries other than a candidate's home country were acceptable under UN rules.
She concluded by saying that "Mr Rudd is not a candidate for UN Secretary General".
