Australia
Multilateralism matters again
Freshly sworn in and already warmly welcomed by Quad leaders in Tokyo, Anthony Albanese got off to a swinging start on the foreign policy front. As the realities of government set…
Japan-Australia: building a hydrogen supply chain
Of the many issues canvassed at the Quad leaders’ meeting in Tokyo last week, the four partners stressed the importance of common energy supply chains. The leaders agreed in…
Would China? Australia’s chance to back women police in the Pacific
China’s pursuit of a Pacific-wide deal with island nations covering policing, security and data communications cooperation leaves the new Labor government in Australia facing a…
Australia can’t stay silent on decolonisation in the Pacific
The newly elected Albanese government has made initial steps to reset its relationship with France, ruptured by the AUKUS agreement and the cancellation of the $90 billion Naval…
Labor’s Pacific plan: ticking the economic box
Penny Wong, Australia’s new Foreign Minister, has quickly headed to the Pacific Island region inside her first week in the role. Wong’s intentions appear twofold: a counterbalance…
“Black ships”, the Quad and space
At the first in-person leaders’ summit of the Quad in Washington in September last year, the four member countries came forward with an ambitious space agenda. A working group was…
Albanese steps cautiously through the Quad wrangle
The staff at the neighbourhood convenience store here in Tokyo are always amused when I drop by to pick up four or five papers in the morning. That I have done it twice this week…
Where to for trade policy?
With the signing of an interim “free trade” deal with India, and an agreement with the European Union nearing the final stages, Australia has moved closer to the previous…
Australia enters the post-party phase of Western democracy
Two federal elections ago, in 2016, the primary vote for the Labor Party and the Liberal-Nationals coalition reached record lows, while the number of voters who put an independent…
Engaging with Southeast Asia: more than aid
During the Australian election campaign, Labor pledged $470 million aid to Southeast Asia over four years, marking it as an attempt to re-engage the region. Labor also promised to…