China and Australia appear to have patched things up, and more conciliatory tones are even heard about relations with the United States following Xi’s visit in November. In this In Forum, 9DASHLINE asks a number of experts to weigh in on whether we can expect improving ties to continue through 2024.
Read MoreWritten by Elena Collinson
After seven years marked by bullying and heavy-handed tactics by Beijing, episodes of diplomatic inelegance by Canberra, and the asperity of mutual criticism, Australia-China relations have tentatively shifted to a more normalised state.
Read MoreWritten by Hunter Marston
Japan has emerged as a critical partner of choice for Southeast Asian countries, particularly in its efforts to build maritime and coast guard capacity for frontline states in the South China Sea, including the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
Read MoreThis week, 9DASHLINE had the opportunity to speak with James Crabtree, Executive Director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies-Asia (IISS).
Read MoreWritten by Dr Lucas Knotter
While it is tempting to view the relatively small island of Bougainville as merely drifting into the geopolitical whirlwinds of more powerful actors in the region, we should not forget that Bougainville also maintains considerable leverage in relation to these actors.
Read MoreWritten by Marco Neveu and Charlie Thame
Xi’s anti-corruption projects in the mainland seem to have sparked a degree of outward mobility by the triads from the authoritarian domestic core towards the more liminal and experimental periphery of Chinese influence.
Read MoreWritten by Geoffrey Miller
And given the focus on Western unity and solidarity in recent months, there’s every chance Jacinda Ardern would travel together with Anthony Albanese on any European side-trip to Ukraine — on a joint ANZAC solidarity mission.
Read MoreWritten by Kate Clayton
However, it is still too close to call, as demonstrated by the 2019 election where Labor’s predicted win did not actually materialise. If the Labor Party is elected, the Indo-Pacific will likely see a more proactive and engaged Australia that centres regionalism and climate change at the heart of its foreign policy strategy.
Read MoreIn terms of the ‘China challenge’, I think Australia’s key goal is to preserve peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, both through its membership in the Quad and through maintaining cordial ties with China.
Read MoreWritten by Susannah Patton
The President’s positive statement at least opens the door for US allies and partners to put forward their views on US regional economic engagement. The United States’ offer to host APEC in 2023 should give high-level impetus for the development of this economic framework.
Read MoreWritten by Alan Tidwell
The dispute puts Australia in a difficult spot, pitting its northern neighbour against its Quad partner. Perhaps this might be a moment in which Canberra reaches back into its peacemaking bag to help heal the rift.
Read MoreWritten by Hunter Marston
It will take more than lofty speeches to bolster a shaky alliance with Manila and to raise the partnership with Hanoi to the next level, and an economic strategy, so far absent, should accompany a military presence if Washington is serious about reducing Beijing’s influence.
Read MoreWritten by Tridivesh Singh Maini
The US and its allies need to provide an alternative economic narrative as merely criticising Beijing is not enough. Thus far the Biden administration has made the right noises by calling for a collaborative approach on economic issues. Nevertheless, it needs to strike a careful balance and can not ignore domestic political pressures.
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