Best of 2025 - Australia needs to diplomatically disengage from our 'dangerous ally' |
It seems likely that our prime minister will meet Donald Trump at the United Nations General Assembly later this month.
A repost from 15 September 2025.
AUKUS submarines will cost five times the entire annual defence budget. We can’t fund both AUKUS and a self reliant defence capability. We must choose self reliance.
Anthony Albanese has been wise not to heed the Austral-Americans urging him get to Washington as soon as possible to meet Trump. He decided not to join the Conga line of heads of state and government prostrating themselves before Trump, only to be humiliated.
Prime ministers have the authority to do things which foreign ministers or defence ministers cannot. Anthony Albanese should seize the opportunity to demonstrate that he is firm and clear in outlining Australia’s position not just on tariffs but, much more importantly, on our national security and sovereignty. This visit will not be risk-free, but Albanese could spell out very clearly matters that are vital for Australia’s future, as John Curtin did many decades ago.
It would be natural for Albanese to say that while he supports many Trump positions, e.g. on Iran, he can’t support the line that some people high in the Trump Administration keep putting forward about China and Taiwan, that a US-China war is likely and must be prepared for and we must be part of it.
He could say that he recently had held “settling” talks with President Xi, and that Australia could not expect him to stick to their provisions if it is obviously preparing to join a US war effort against China.
A new world order is emerging with declining US influence
Albanese’s visit to the US provides an opportunity to carefully........