Malcolm Fraser was the last Australian Prime Minister who thought the Commonwealth could be a major instrument of Australian foreign policy. Some of Fraser’s successors—Hawke, Howard and even Gillard—believed the Commonwealth could do useful work …
Tag Archive for: "foreign policy"
A week after a serious military–police clash in Port Moresby went largely unreported in Australia, prompting some commentators to warn that PNG mightn’t always muddle-through potential crises, it’s reassuring that four of our high-profile ministers …
To see how deeply Australia reaches into the South Pacific, try the taxi test. Hop into a taxi anywhere in the Islands and negotiate to pay the fare in Australian dollars. My random survey over …
Prior to President Joko Widodo’s inauguration, one of his principal advisers lamented Indonesia’s weak state mentality. In a critique of Indonesia’s defence posture, which he characterised as ‘too passive’, he quipped to seminar participants that …
Gough Whitlam helped Australia think about finding its security in Asia, not to seek security from Asia. Not least of Whitlam’s achievements was to make Australia colour-blind, in both word and deed. Harold Holt’s government, …