AIIA National Conference
New Frontiers in Australian Foreign Policy
October 24, 2022, 8am-5:30pm, Hotel Realm, Canberra
Full Conference Video
Relive the 2022 AIIA National Conference
New Approaches to Emerging Strategic Challenges
Plenary Session. With a global future looking ever more uncertain, how can we build a national strategy that preserves Australia’s interests and enhances its security? In the eyes of many observers, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has confirmed that the era of globalisation is over and we are again in a world dominated by great power rivalry with often horrific consequences. Are we entering a new era of power politics, and if so, what does Australia’s response need to be? Are we anywhere near understanding the complexity of the threats and challenges the country faces? Or are the critics correct in stating that a focus on military responses to regional issues has limited our strategic imagination? With such measures as “lawfare,” “grey-zone activity,” environmental instability, development strategies and effective diplomacy by potential rivals in our region, and pandemics identified as threats to Australian security, how can Australia best coordinate across its agencies, including the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, to address its regional security concerns?
New Avenues for Partnership in Australia’s Region
Breakout Session. Does Australia invest enough in winning friends and influencing countries where it matters in its near abroad? Do we see our neighbours in the Pacific and Southeast Asia as equals with potential to help us shape the region in ways conducive to Australian interests? How well attuned is Australia to the concerns of its neighbours? Is there room for more cooperation with regional powers such as India and Japan? How much do regional actors pay attention to Australia, its priorities, and its concerns?
New Challenges and Pathways for Australian Trade
Breakout Session. Geopolitical tensions are challenging the free and open trading system which has benefitted Australia and the Asian region so greatly. Progress has ground close to a halt in some of the global institutions on which we rely such as the World Trade Organisation. The impact of Covid has reinforced pressures on global supply chains. How should Australia respond to this new environment? Where should it focus its efforts? Where are the opportunities for Australia in the emerging environment, bilaterally, regionally and globally? How can we best shape a trade environment conducive to our interests?
New Ways Forward in the Australia-China Relationship?
Plenary Session. Although Beijing appears to have dialled back on “Wolf Warrior Diplomacy,” Australia’s relations with China are still near their lowest point since normalisation in the 1970s. Yet China remains Australia’s most significant trading partner. How should we best manage the nadir in the relationship, and is rapprochement possible or even desirable? Australia has proven that it can stand up to economic coercion, but with China seeking to diversify and reduce its reliance on mineral imports, will this be the case indefinitely? How should Australia approach issues that China has declared as its “core national interests?” Are there areas, such as climate, where the two nations can cooperate? What effect is our approach to China having on our relations with others in the region? And what can we glean from the 20th National Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party about shifts in China’s foreign policy?
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