Globalisation and Chinese Grand Strategy

January 29, 2018

China is taking steps intended to reduce its exposure to Western economic coercion, while enhancing its leverage over others.

Deng Xiaoping‘s initiation of the ‘reform and opening up‘ programme at the end of 1978 appears in retrospect to be the decisive turning point in the history of modern China. Increasing reliance on market forces, as opposed to state planning, and deeper integration into the global economy, in place of the old policy of self-imposed isolation and virtual autarky, launched China onto a steep growth trajectory. Read more

China’s Understanding of Global Order Shouldn’t Be Ours

January 24, 2018

Niall Ferguson is a prolific public intellectual who has made a career out of shattering shibboleths. At various points he has defended the achievements of the British Empire, argued that the United Kingdom’s entry into the First World War was “the biggest error in modern history,” and made the case at length that Henry Kissinger is a misunderstood idealist.

Ferguson is at it again. In a recent op-ed, he takes on what he describes as the prevailing “myth of the liberal international order.” This piece appeared in China’s Global Times, a pugnacious nationalistic tabloid published by the official People’s Daily. Read more

Sam Dastyari’s fall from grace should prompt China action all round

December 6, 2017

It would be a mistake to dismiss senator Sam Dastyari’s fall from grace as merely the consequence of one politician’s lack of judgment or character. Dastyari’s ­behaviour illuminates the risk to our democracy of allowing China to exert undue influence over our institutions, society and policies. The problem is that we don’t have a strategy for managing this risk and, until we do, its absence only invites more Chinese interference. Read more

Australia needs to engage China and hedge the risks of this relationship

November 26, 2017

Independence is a powerful, unifying idea that has coursed through Western history from Thermopylae to Catalonia, inspiring nations to greatness and sometimes war. But Australia’s march to independence was relatively uneventful and prosaic. Statues of iconic liberators are notably absent in our cities and towns because there was no war of independence or bloody struggle to throw off the colonial yoke.
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Opinion: U.S. Warship Sails Near Island Claimed by Beijing in South China Sea

May 24, 2017

“Australia is extremely reluctant to participate in freedom of navigation operations that involve flying over or sailing through the 12 nautical miles around the islands,” said Alan Dupont, a former Australian military intelligence official.

“The Australian government feels it would be provocative and upset China,” Mr. Dupont said. “It feels it would be counterproductive now that China has militarized the islands.”
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U.S. Strikes on Syria Put Xi in Tough Position for Trump Meeting

April 7, 2017

“Xi can’t fail to be impressed by Trump’s resolve,” said Alan Dupont, an Australian military analyst who worked for that country’s Defense Department. “Xi will have to reassess what the Trump presidency means for Chinese interests in East Asia, particularly North Korea and the South China Sea.” Read more

China’s Power: Up for Debate

December 2, 2016

The challenges and opportunities presented by China’s rise are hotly contested. To help make sense of the issue, the ChinaPower Conference will feature a series of debates between leading experts on the nature of Chinese power. Read more

Will China rule the world? Asian superpower faces uncertain future

October 8, 2016

Will China rule the world? Many of its citizens hope so, an understandable desire given the country’s emergence from a century of relative weakness and “national humiliation” at the hands of foreigners in an otherwise extended period of pre-eminence in Asia going back millennia. Read more