Assessment on "Trimester 3, 2010-11 in the Future"

Assessment 8 pages (3793 words) Sources: 15

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Trimester 3, 2010-11

In the Future, How Independent of the International Hierarchy of Influence Can Australia's Foreign Policy Be?

Having gone through it thoroughly there are major omissions from your analysis. You don't interrogate any of the concepts, your evidence is sparse and lacks detail apart from the trade figures for 1 year, and you have an undergraduate dependence on Quoted material to make your point. Also there are no references to the materials supplied to you for your study of the topic.

I suggest you use the next month to get fully engaged in your discussion about the independence of Australia's foreign policy, drawing on the materials available to you and reaching your own conclusions based on your analysis of past and present actions and pronouncements about the future.

You are rewarded for doing the allotted task with a depth of detail and analysis.

I look forward to reading your 7th level presentation.

In Australia we use s instead of z in words like globalise

Introduction

As the forces of globalisation continue to redefine geopolitical boundaries around the world, Australia remains in a unique position with regards to its foreign policy. Not only does it not share any borders with other countries, Australia's relative geographic isolation from the rest of the English-speaking Western world has required it to pursue foreign policy initiatives with the nations of Asia in the past, that have been in its best economic interests, while balancing the need to closely cooperate with other countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States, for security purposes. This foreign policy balancing act has helped Australia remain competitive in an increasingly globalised marketplace, and it is clear that Australia's interests will be best served by pursuing a foreign policy that recognizes the importance of its membership in the international community. Nevertheless, Australia future success and security demand a foreign policy that keeps its best interest in the forefront and avoids foreign entanglements that detract from these interests. Such entanglements might include scenarios wherein Australia was compelled to act militarily by virtue of bilateral agreements with other countries, such as its joint security agreement commitments with Japan, the U.S. Or the U.K. To determine how independent of the current international hierarchy of influence. Australia's foreign policy can -- and should -- be in the future, this paper provides a review of the relevant literature, followed by a summary of the research and important findings in the conclusion. For the purposes of this study, the term "future" will roughly refer to the next 25 to 50 years, the term "hierarchy of influence" will mean the international community in general and those countries with which Australia maintains close relations in particular, and "independence" will refer to the ability of Australia to act unilaterally in foreign policy matters.

NOW

AND THEN

Review and Discussion

Current Level of Independence of Australia's Foreign Policy

Just as "no man is an island," no country can afford to remain completely isolated from the international community in the 21st century. Indeed, even the isolationist "Hermit Kingdom" of North Korea remains inextricably bound to its major ally, China, as well as numerous nonaligned nations throughout Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East (Haglund 2003). Likewise, Australia's unique geographic position has created a need to develop foreign policy initiatives that reinforce the country's independence, while actively engaging other countries for its own economic and security interests. In this regard, Gyngell and Wesley emphasize that, "Given where we are located, we have to rely more directly on our own efforts to protect and advance the considerable security and economic interests we have engaged in the international system" (2003, p. 11). Some good examples of this process were Australia's mutual security pact with Japan in 2007 (Jiang 2007), Prime Minister Rudd's recent efforts to reverse the diplomatic standoff with Papau New Guinea through dialogue and personal engagement, the approval of the national government to initiate ratification procedures for the Kyoto Protocol that holds special significance for Oceania, and the Pacific Partnerships for Development (Elliott, Fry, Tow & Ravenhill 2008).

Nevertheless, Australian foreign policy has also historically acknowledged the need for bilateral relationships with the United States and the United Kingdom for mutually beneficial economic and security purposes. As Snyder points out, "Australia's Asia-Pacific regional security policy has traditionally seen a balancing between two competing policy approaches, one of seeking protection from threats in the region by 'great and powerful friends' and the other of greater engagement with the region" (2006, p. 322). In fact, Australian foreign policy has consistently embraced alliance-making as a means to ensuring its domestic security and economic interests. In this regard, Dr. Ashton Calvert, Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra since 1998, emphasizes that, "Throughout its history as an independent country, Australia has been actively involved in international affairs both within and beyond the Asia-Pacific region to which we belong" (2003, 25). In other words, even though Australia has always had a multilateral focus, it has also relied on mutual alliances for support. For example, Henderson (2004) reports that following Federation in 1901, Australia consistently relied on the United Kingdom until World War II; thereafter, Australia has forged closer relations with the United States to the point where the Howard government was perceived to be acting as a "deputy sheriff" for U.S. interests in the Pacific region (Elliott et al. 2008).

By sharp contrast, unlike many of the nations of Asia and Europe, Australia's foreign policy has historically sought to reinforce its independence from the international hierarchy of influence because of its geographic isolation from other countries. In this regard, Gyngell and Wesley observe that, "Because Australia does not belong to a natural grouping we are not in a position to rely on the efforts of others in protecting and advancing our interests in international affairs" (2003, p. 12).

Because of this geographic isolation, Australia's close historic relations with the U.S. And the U.K. have been based primarily on the countries' shared heritage and closely aligned security and economic interests rather than their proximity (Calvert, 2003). Moreover, Australia's foreign policy will be one of the more important methods by which the country's independence within the sphere of the international hierarchy of influence will be sustained. For instance, Australia's former foreign minister, Smith, emphasises that, "Foreign policy is an indispensable arm of strengthening national security and strategic interests" (2008, p. 4). Consequently, Australia's level of foreign policy independence will be affected by longstanding mutual security and trade agreements, as well as shifts in the economic sphere wherein the United States and the United Kingdom may become less relevant and important to Australia's best interests while countries such as China, Indonesia and Japan assume new relevance and importance. Collectively, all of these countries as well as the international community can be said to form a hierarchy of influence, varying only in degrees, with the 19 other countries that form the Group of Twenty and the 53 countries comprising the Commonwealth Heads of Government being at the forefront of this hierarchy of influence for Australia. A further analysis of the current international hierarchy of influence on Australia's foreign policy is provided below.

The Relevant International Hierarchy of Influence on Australia's Foreign Policy

Throughout the second half of the 20th century, the international hierarchy of influence that has affected Australia's foreign policy was broad-based and included the nations of Asia (primarily Japan and China) and the countries of the European Union (Calvert 2003), this hierarchy of influence has largely been dominated by the United Kingdom and the United States. According to Calvert, Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra since 1998, "Given U.S. pre-eminence in world strategic and economic affairs, the importance to Australia of these already very strong ties with the United States is likely to grow. Australia's contemporary relationship with the United Kingdom is also strong and vibrant" (Calvert 2003, p. 25).

Given the shared heritage, language, customs, values as well as the enormous mutual economic and security interests of Australia, the UK and the U.S., these close relations are understandable and it is reasonable to suggest that this longstanding trilateral relationship will remain relevant for the foreseeable future and that Australia's foreign policy will reflect this relationship (Flitton 2004). In support of this assertion, in 2008, the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Stephen Smith confirmed that, "Australia's alliance with the United States remains indispensable to Australia's defence, security and strategic arrangements. That will continue to be the case for a very considerable period of time" (2008, p. 5). Nevertheless, in a speech at the University of Western Australia entitled "Australia's foreign policy looking west," the current Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kevin Rudd, recently observed that "Global interests require us to be active in all the regions and capitals of the world through what I have long called creative middle power diplomacy" (2010, 3). In addition, Rudd also cited the growing influence of India, Latin America… READ MORE

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