The recent Statement from former Australian Foreign Ministers Gareth Evans and Bob Carr calling for Australia to play a role in seeking detente between the US and China in Asia is worthy. But is it realistic?

It tells us that the Australia-Japan initiated International Commission on Nuclear Non- Proliferation and Disarmament of 2009, is a model of creative, middle power diplomacy.

But in the name of protecting its own security Tokyo rejects any disarmament proposal that hints of sacrificing absolute US nuclear security. How is that supposed to promote detente in Asia?

A resolution of the North Korea problem must be a key to any such detente. But Tokyo was directly responsible for sabotaging the 2002 Pyongyang Declaration that would have seen North Korea make its first move to nuclear disarmament and to joining in........

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