{"id":17669,"date":"2015-01-01T06:00:24","date_gmt":"2014-12-31T19:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=17669"},"modified":"2015-01-02T06:40:59","modified_gmt":"2015-01-01T19:40:59","slug":"editors-picks-for-2014-australias-strategic-policy-after-the-northern-tour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/editors-picks-for-2014-australias-strategic-policy-after-the-northern-tour\/","title":{"rendered":"Editors’ picks for 2014 ‘Australia\u2019s strategic policy after the northern tour’"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Prime<\/a><\/figure>\n

Originally posted 17 April 2014.<\/strong><\/p>\n

In its first few months in office, a combination of rookie errors and challenging circumstances gave the Abbott government\u2019s international policy a shaky start. The PM\u2019s declaration that Japan was Australia\u2019s best friend in Asia showed a lack of diplomatic finesse, while the government\u2019s handling of the Snowden leaks made something of a mockery of the Coalition\u2019s intentions to prioritise good relations with its near neighbours. Critics who\u2019d labelled Abbott out of his depth in foreign and strategic policy seemed to be on to something.<\/p>\n

After nearly seven months in office, the Coalition\u2019s foreign and strategic policy is beginning to coalesce. Abbott\u2019s remarkably successful three-country tour of Northeast Asia shows the government\u2019s approach to Asia is beginning to take firmer shape. In particular, we can now see clearly the course it\u2019s trying to navigate in its dealings with Asia\u2019s major powers.<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the big themes of the Abbott government\u2019s strategic policy is to signal clearly where Australia stands in relation to the fundamental underpinnings of Asia\u2019s regional order. Australia thinks the basic parameters of the strategic status quo are the best means to secure and advance Australian and regional interests. Those centre around continued American primacy, a stable military balance, a relatively open economic system and the international rule of law. While both sides of Australian politics share that belief, they\u2019ve not always been clear about their commitment, mindful of the ways it might upset China.<\/p>\n

In contrast to the clumsy declarations and curt press releases of the first few months, the set-pieces of the Northern Tour allowed a more sophisticated approach to that signalling. In the prime minister attending the newly established National Security Council in Tokyo, his personal audience with Emperor Akihito, and in the signature of various trade and defence agreements, Australia made clear the depth of its ties to Japan. Moreover, the visit reinforced Australia\u2019s commitment to the American-dominated regional setting, albeit in ways China would find it difficult to complain about.<\/p>\n

The set piece dramas for the trip were the three trade agreements and the substantial business delegation to China. Concluding a deal with Japan, signing an already finalised text with South Korea and giving the long-stalled China agreement a prime ministerial heave were the most publicised achievements. While the politics of the trade agreements were mainly domestic\u2014it\u2019s the use of the agreements as fundamentally political devices that\u2019s especially notable. The decision to conclude what are remarkably constrained preferential trade deals was driven by a clear strategic calculus. Indeed, good friends like the US and New Zealand have been privately critical of the knock-on consequences for regional trade liberalisation. But the Japan agreement does more than advance two-way trade and investment; it signals longer-term commitment. Similarly, the desire to build a stronger strategic link with Seoul and to strengthen relations among US allies underpinned more overt aims of improving access to agricultural and services markets. The China deal is perhaps the most political of all and sends two messages to Beijing: first, Australia sees a mature economic relationship with China as compatible with its strategic link to Washington; and second, Australia can\u2019t be interested in containing China if it seeks closer trade relations with Beijing. The Abbott government has little time for those who argue that the strategic and the economic are inextricably intertwined; the strategic is separable from and more important than economic questions.<\/p>\n

During the election campaign the Coalition sensibly avoided spelling out how it was going to manage Australia\u2019s relations with Beijing and Washington. The Abbott government has now made clear that in its handling of China it\u2019s dusting off the Howard playbook of compartmentalisation. Australia is seeking to focus squarely on its shared economic interests with China, being clear about its strategic relationship with the US, and keeping questions of democracy, human rights and other issues off the table. Over the longer run, that strategy is likely to be tested. As the two economies become more intertwined, and as the relationship matures, keeping the economic separate from the political and strategic will become harder.<\/p>\n

Abbott\u2019s first major diplomatic foray was strikingly effective. Notwithstanding a few clunky speeches, there were no major gaffes. The government brought home a raft of \u2018wins\u2019 that it\u2019ll use to thump the ALP at home. At the strategic level, the trip signals how Australia is going to try to navigate the Asian Century. Clearly, the government believes the order established by US primacy must be retained. Equally, it recognises that the rise of China challenges key aspects of that order. The Northern Tour continues the heavy emphasis Australia has traditionally put on its relations with Japan. That reflects not only the long and deep relationship between the two US allies but also a larger strategic ambition. Australia is trying to assist Japan take on a strategic role in the region commensurate with its size. If Japan can become a strong autonomous strategic power, closely linked to the US via an alliance, the basic regional order established over the past thirty years is likely to prevail over the medium term. If it doesn\u2019t, a more unstable future likely awaits us. Much depends on what path Japan takes, and the Abbott government is intent on shaping that development to the best of its ability.<\/p>\n

Nick Bisley<\/a> is executive director of La Trobe Asia and professor of International Relations at La Trobe University, Australia. Image courtesy of Twitter user @TonyAbbottMHR<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Originally posted 17 April 2014. In its first few months in office, a combination of rookie errors and challenging circumstances gave the Abbott government\u2019s international policy a shaky start. The PM\u2019s declaration that Japan was …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":230,"featured_media":13474,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nEditors' picks for 2014 'Australia\u2019s strategic policy after the northern tour' | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/editors-picks-for-2014-australias-strategic-policy-after-the-northern-tour\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Editors' picks for 2014 'Australia\u2019s strategic policy after the northern tour' | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Originally posted 17 April 2014. 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