New Zealand faces “more geostrategic challenges than we have had in decades”, according to the defence minister. A broad defence and security reset aims to prepare the country for what may be ahead.
Biden’s decision is a clear reminder of the importance that US domestic politics continue to play in setting the terms for US strategy and credibility in the region.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Sydney on Monday.
David Gray/AP/AAP
Albanese now has a firm promise of a state visit to the US this year, and an invitation to go to China. If he manages that double-header, it will be another coup for his foreign policy.
The long-awaited plan for Australia to get nuclear-powered submarines is expected next month, as are recommendations from a major strategic review into our defence force.
For years, New Zealand has tried to separate its economic dependency on China from its pro-Western strategic alliances. The new Indo-Pacific Economic Framework tests that balancing act even more.
At this week’s meetings, Japan and India will be looking for signs that Australia is serious about Asia. The US will be reviewing its expectations about its AUKUS partner.
The US, Australia, Japan and India are keen to show they are not merely reacting to their rivals’ agendas, but are able to offer their own ambitious solutions for the Indo-Pacific.
In a surprise result, Kishida defeated the popular Taro Kono in the party leadership contest, making him the country’s third prime minister in just over a year.
The region is already arming at the fastest rate in the world, but China and other nations can be expected to respond to AUKUS by further expanding their militaries.
The Quad wants to show that liberal democracies can deliver solutions to the greatest challenges of our time — a way of countering China’s ambitions in the region.
Fourteen years after the Quad was first conceived, its leaders will meet for the first time face-to-face this week. China will dominate the conversations.
The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue might be the most important security alliance you’ve never heard of – and New Zealand needs to start taking it seriously.
The group has been at pains to stress it is not fundamentally about countering the ‘Chinese threat’. But of course, that is primarily what it is about.
Chair in Global Islamic Politics, Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation; Scholar -In-Residence Asia Society Australia, Deakin University