Australia: Regionalism as a Nexus to Great Power Politics |
Last month, Foreign Minister Penny Wong delivered a keynote address at the Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) Gala Dinner. She presented what she described as Australia’s foreign policy priorities through the so-called “Four Rs”: region, relationships, rules, and resilience.
Much of the discourse was familiar. Concepts such as the Indo-Pacific, regionalism, middle-power diplomacy, and the rules-based order are staples of Australian foreign policy, and Wong’s speech largely repackaged existing ideas in a polished rhetorical form – something she is widely regarded as doing well.
The key debate, however, is how this framework reflects Australia’s positioning amid intensifying great-power competition.
Supporters view it as a clear articulation of an emerging foreign policy doctrine. Darren Lim of the Australian National University, for instance, argued that this framework sharpens and elevates themes previously expressed in government documents, while positioning Australia to navigate a more volatile international environment.
Critics take a different view. Mark Beeson of University of Technology Sydney and Griffith University contended that the new narrative does little to shift Australia away from a U.S.-centric strategy, and that commentators have overlooked the continued primacy of the alliance. He argued that policymakers struggle to imagine a future in which Australia exercises full strategic autonomy with concrete actions.
We argue, however, that although current policy does not fundamentally alter........