Peter Dutton has no plans to change the coalition's position on transgender rights despite calls to "lean into" changes following Donald Trump's rejection of gender-diverse people.
Nationals leader David Littleproud said the nation should also consider gender identity rights after the US president signed an order proclaiming his country would only recognise two sexes.
"I think there's elements of this that come to the core principle of protecting women, particularly in things like sport," Mr Littleproud told Sky News on Thursday.
"We just need to take a deep breath on this. It doesn't need to get emotional.
"It comes back to ... respecting that biological basis that we can't get away from when we're born.
"We can do that in a sensible way without vitriol, without upsetting anyone, but just respecting the fact that there are some changes that I think in our society that we probably need to lean into."
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton quickly shut down the suggestion during a press conference on Thursday.
"Australia is a sovereign nation, and as prime minister I'll act in our country's best interests, and I'll make decisions that I think are in the best interests of all Australians," Mr Dutton said.
"We don't have any plans to change our position in relation to that issue."
Government-issued IDs including passports and visas would be required to "accurately reflect the holder's sex", as defined by Mr Trump's orders, which means gender-diverse Australians could encounter problems when travelling through the US - or be blocked from entering.
More information is expected to be published by the US government in coming months, according to University of Sydney health ethics associate professor Morgan Carpenter.
"It's plausible," he told AAP.
"There's still quite a bit that we don't know."
Australian passports can contain the "X" gender marker for those who are non-binary, intersex, gender-fluid or otherwise non-conforming.
In some countries such as the United Arab Emirates, those travelling with an "X" marker are barred from entry or transit.
It is not clear whether the US will implement similar rules.
The federal government's travel advice for the US notes Australian passports comply with international standards for sex and gender but "we can't guarantee that a passport showing 'X' in the sex field will be accepted for entry or transit by another country" and urges travellers to contact the nearest embassy.
LGBTQI advocacy group Just. Equal Australia has called on Foreign Minister Penny Wong to clarify whether transgender or non-binary Australians could be barred from the US and if they could protest if they were.
Asked about the government's position on Mr Trump's sex definitions, Senator Wong said "these are matters of the United States".
Under the 47th US president's order, sex is referred to as "an individual's immutable biological classification as either male or female" and is based on the capacity to produce reproductive cells at the time of conception.
Prof Carpenter expressed concern for and solidarity with the rights of all people in the US and said there had been a historic tendency to scapegoat minority groups such as trans and gender-diverse people to divert attention from issues that affected the bulk of the population, such as the cost of living.
"It's wise to think about the use of culture wars as a form of distraction from more fundamental economic, social and healthcare issues," he said.
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