Visceral dislike of Donald Trump by his many detractors has spawned an outbreak of alarmism that threatens to erode nearly seventy years of bipartisanship on Australian foreign policy. Green’s leader, Richard Di Natale, is the latest politician to question the value of close security ties with the US, Read more
Since Donald Trump’s remarkable US election triumph, several influential members of Australia’s foreign policy community have argued his victory ought to be the catalyst for a rethink of the US alliance and our broader foreign policy settings. Read more
As the Trump juggernaut rolled across the US on election day, turning the political map red, anxious foreign leaders began to contemplate a new world order of a kind few had envisaged.
Could it be that Donald Trump, the quintessential change agent, would administer the last rites to Pax Americana, the US-led rules-based Western order that had prevailed since 1945, thereby achieving what China, Russia and legions of anti-American jihadists had failed to bring about? Read more
In 2015, China’s military modernization efforts and its assertive activities in the East and South China Seas dominate public discourse on China’s growing influence. While these developments are usually viewed through a military lens, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) activities should be considered and examined as an instrument of statecraft to achieve specific political outcomes as a form of political warfare.
Read more
Hillary Clinton’s proclamation that the “United States is back in Asia” begs the question of whether the US could be said to have ever really left. Since its comprehensive defeat of Japan in the 20th century’s second great war, the US has maintained a substantial, unbroken strategic presence in Asia, fought in two other major conflicts (Korea and Vietnam) and is still engaged in a shadowy, ‘long war’ against terrorist groups in the Muslim heartland of Southeast Asia. For many Asians, the US is the principal guarantor of regional stability. Like it or not, America remains Asia’s indispensable power.
Read more
“So I don’t think there is any doubt, if there were when this administration began, that the United States is back in Asia. But I want to underscore that we are back to stay.” Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of State, January 12, 2010. Read more
Sustaining Stability, Coping with Conflict, Building Cooperation?
Except for the problem of North Korea, East Asia has been a region of comparative stability. U.S.-PRC relations have continued a long period of stability despite the frictions that have accompanied China’s rise. Cross-Strait relations have warmed rapidly. U.S.-Japan security ties have remained strong, underpinned by common regional interests and concerns.
Read more
In 2007 the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney conducted a survey examining the views of Australians on American foreign, economic and trade policies. Acting CEO of the US Studies Centre, Alan Dupont, is interviewed about the results. Read more
The euphoria and promise of Barak Obama’s election triumph will soon be tempered by the stark prospect of US weakness and decline. The new president has a power of work ahead of him if he is to restore the tarnished US brand and repair the financial mess that is likely to be his predecessor’s most enduring legacy. Read more
THE national survey commissioned by the University of Sydney’s United States Studies Centre is a unique and fascinating snapshot of Australian attitudes towards contemporary American institutions, society and culture. The survey reveals a surprising ambivalence about the US and a growing disconnect between Australian and American values which, if not reversed, spells trouble ahead for the special relationship. Read more