Abhay Kumar Singh replies: China’s growing influence in the South Pacific was thrust into the limelight when word leaked in March 2022 that it has negotiated a secret security agreement with the Solomon Islands, a country with which it established diplomatic ties only in 2019. Despite fervent parley by Australia and the US against this security agreement, the leader of the Solomon Islands formally announced the conclusion of this security agreement with China.
The Indo-Pacific construct has significantly enhanced the strategic salience of both India and Australia in a multipolar region. While the two nations have considerably deepened their strategic partnership, there is scope for much more improvement in several sectors.
Abhay Kumar Singh replies: AUKUS commitment to support Australia in acquiring nuclear-powered submarines for the Royal Australian Navy has unarguably been the most eye-catching provision in the announcement of an enhanced trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US). Notwithstanding significant international attention, this announcement about the nuclear submarine deal remains devoid of key details.
Timely as it was, the Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s five-day China visit may be considered a success on all fronts. Leading the ‘strongest Australian delegation ever’ to China, Gillard pledged to give the relationship a ‘concrete shape’, which in Chinese Premier Li Kequing’s words, is already ‘comprehensive, constructive and cooperative’. This issue brief analyses Julia Gillard’s China visit in the context of rising Australia-China bonhomie.
Publisher: Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses 2012
The Year Book seeks to promote a better understanding of contemporary issues affecting China and their impact on India. This first edition of an annual series of year books is a compilation of incisive chapters focussing on China’s relations with the US, South Asia, ASEAN, Japan and East Asia, Central and West Asia, and the SCO. India-China relations—of considerable interest and significance to India—are discussed as are the Chinese economy, media, the People’s Liberation Army, and the political landscape inside the country.
While there is no denying the fact that Rudd’s ideas on foreign policy were well-intentioned, one cannot possibly overlook the fact that it all fell apart in the course of practice.
The Unconventional Prime Minister: An Assessment of Kevin Rudd
While there is no denying the fact that Rudd’s ideas on foreign policy were well-intentioned, one cannot possibly overlook the fact that it all fell apart in the course of practice.