Australia, China and Pakistan |
A recent visit to Canberra, Melbourne and Sydney entailed interesting perspectives on how the middle power Australia, like Pakistan, is caught between two big powers, i.e. China and the United States, for maintaining a balance in relations with the two global rivals. Whatever way you look at it, an intrinsic tilt to the US is unmistakable. Secondly, the Pakistan-Australia ties also stand at an interesting juncture in the context of the former's role in the mediation between the US and Iran.
With a population of nearly 27 million, a whopping US$2.12 trillion GDP and US$75,648 per capita income, Australia ranks among the world's 15 largest economies. For its strong voice in the Indo-Pacific region, strategic partnerships in alliances like ANZUS and AUKUS, Quad, WTO and the UN, and a reputation as a stable, rule-of-law-based society, Australia today wants to be reckoned as an influential "middle power" with enviable democratic credentials.
The mutually conflicting relationships with the US and China have probably never been as stressful as today. China is one of Australia's biggest trading partners, while the US is the security guarantor, particularly for maritime security in the Indo-Pacific Ocean. For Canberra, the Australian capital, maritime security is central to its sovereignty and supply chains. The National Defence Strategy 2026 also spells it out loud and clear. An across-the-board consensus exists on the US as the essential linchpin of Australia's security.
Under a September 2021 AUKUS security agreement with the US and the UK,........