Australia in the World
130 episodes - English - Latest episode: 6 days ago - ★★★★★ - 18 ratingsA discussion of the most important news and issues in international affairs through a uniquely Australian lens. Hosted by Darren Lim, in memory of Allan Gyngell.
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Episodes
Ep. 80: Gary Quinlan (Part 1): On Indonesia in the world, and diplomacy in a time of COVID-19
August 25, 2021 20:16 - 53 minutes - 46.6 MBIn a conversation recorded on Thursday 5 August, Allan and Darren welcome Gary Quinlan to the podcast. Gary’s career in Australian foreign policy can only be described as stellar, having worked at the top of each of its three pillars: the region, the alliance, and the rules-based order. Gary joined DFAT in 1973 and, until his recent retirement, held one of Australia’s most senior diplomatic appointments as Ambassador to Indonesia from 2018 until April 2021. From 2009, as our permanent repres...
Ep. 79: Afghanistan
August 18, 2021 03:41 - 31 minutes - 30 MBOn Sunday the 15th August the Taliban took control of Kabul, capping an astonishingly rapid takeover of Afghanistan. In this emergency episode, Allan and Darren try to make sense of these events, analytically but also on a more personal level. How could this have happened? Was it true that the United States faced a simple choice between getting out or staying forever? What are the implications for Joe Biden’s legacy, and America’s standing in the world? And what is the Australian angle here?...
Ep. 78: New DFAT Secretary; Exchange hack and Pegasus; APEC; return to Afghanistan?
July 24, 2021 04:38 - 55 minutes - 52.7 MBAustralia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has a new Secretary, Kathryn Campbell. Darren uses the occasion to build a theoretical model of the position, positing that the ideal candidate would fulfil four roles: administrator, consigliere, strategist and diplomat. Allan points out that the “diplomat” skill-set is unique to DFAT, discussing the history of the position not just in Australia but internationally, and some of the novel challenges every DFAT secretary will face. The two ...
Ep. 77: Debating democracy and the “competition of systems”
July 01, 2021 20:30 - 41 minutes - 39 MBIn an episode recorded on 24 June, Allan and Darren take a step back from the news to discuss an emerging theme in international affairs: the competition of systems, which arrays liberal democracies against various types of authoritarianism, with the China model most prominent. President Biden has made both restoring American democracy, and cooperation with likeminded democracies, core pillars of his foreign policy. Allan and Darren compare and contrast Biden’s approach with the neoconserva...
Ep. 76: Morrison’s Perth speech; PM Lee’s China advice; an energised G7; bilaterals with UK & France
June 19, 2021 04:19 - 36 minutes - 33.9 MBThis week’s episode tracks PM Scott Morrison’s recent travels. We begin in Perth prior to his leaving the country with what Allan considers to be a major foreign policy speech. Why? Where Allan sees a definite break from decades of Australian foreign policy, Darren sees a speech responding to shifting political winds, especially with a new occupant in the White House. From Perth the PM flew to Singapore to meet with his counterpart PM Lee Hsien Loong. Lee offered some advice to Australia in...
Ep. 75: PM to NZ; Samoa; Kabul embassy closure; Belarus; lab leak
June 09, 2021 07:16 - 45 minutes - 42.1 MBAfter some time away from the news, Allan and Darren have a lot to catch up on. This episode begins with PM Scott Morrison’s visit to New Zealand to meet his counterpart Jacinda Ardern. Allan provides his readout of the meeting, in which the leaders sought to affirm their shared interests and seemingly quash commentary that there are growing divisions in the relationship. Second on the list is an emerging constitutional crisis in Samoa, where a very close election result ended up in the cour...
Ep. 74: Linda Jakobson (Part 2): Australia-China relations; Taiwan
May 28, 2021 21:00 - 37 minutes - 32.4 MBIn the second half of this double episode with China expert Linda Jakobson, the conversation takes a broader focus. Allan begins with Taiwan, which has been in the headlines lately: how should we think about the dangers? What would it take for Beijing to use military force to resolve the situation? The bulk of the episode is about the Australia-China relationship. How does Linda interpret the decline in bilateral relations—how much is it Australia’s ‘fault’ and how much is it China’s? What ...
Ep. 73: Linda Jakobson (Part 1): On China, Chinese politics, and Finlandisation
May 26, 2021 20:13 - 1 hour - 51.7 MBAllan and Darren welcome Linda Jakobson to the podcast. Linda is a leading China expert, and a vital voice in Australia’s own China debate. The conversation spans almost 100 minutes and will be released in two parts. At a time when the bilateral relationship is at a fresh low, this double episode offers genuine substance and depth on how one should understand China, diagnose the deterioration in Australia-China relations, and chart a pathway forward. Linda is the founding director (and curr...
Ep. 72: Leaving Afghanistan; Aust-NZ-China relations; Biden-Suga summit
April 25, 2021 03:28 - 46 minutes - 38.7 MBWith President Joe Biden announcing the forthcoming withdrawal of ground troops from Afghanistan, the West’s 20 year war in Afghanistan is drawing to a close. Allan and Darren open this week’s podcast with a discussion of whether this is the right decision, and what lessons we should take from this decades-long conflict. The episode then turns to a busy week in bilateral relations with China for both New Zealand and Australia. Kiwi Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta gave her first major speech o...
Ep. 71: Myanmar—tragedy, complexity & power; PNG & Covid-19; Dutton to Defence
April 15, 2021 04:30 - 43 minutes - 40.6 MBThe primary focus of this week’s episode is the terrible situation in Myanmar as the Tatmadaw, the country’s military, cements its coup with increasing levels of violence. Allan’s first posting was to the country and so he leads off with a personal reflection of great sorrow. Turning to analysis, what was the cause of the conflict and to what extent did the country’s civilian government, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, play a role? Is the military sufficiently powerful that it will inevitably be a ...
Ep. 70: Alaska, “competitive co-existence” & duelling sanctions; Quad outcomes; OECD Cormann
March 29, 2021 04:57 - 42 minutes - 39.5 MBWhereas the previous episode looked at the early weeks of the Biden administration, this week Allan and Darren examine the new trajectory of US-China relations. A theatrical public session grabbed the headlines when senior officials met in Alaska, but the readouts from the closed door meetings were more positive. What should we take away from the public drama? Within a few days of that first meeting, the atmosphere became tenser with the EU joining the US, UK and Canada in sanctioning certa...
Ep. 69: Biden’s early days; Quad; Pacific Islands Forum
March 13, 2021 05:27 - 45 minutes - 41.9 MBThe major focus this episode is the early weeks of the Biden administration, which has raced out of the blocks with numerous foreign policy actions, and some have been controversial. Nevertheless, how does it feel to have things (roughly) back to normal again? Putting the news of the day to one side, Allan and Darren direct their attention to two speeches, one given by President Biden, and the other by Secretary of State Blinken, which chart a course for US foreign policy. What will it mean ...
Ep. 68: Natasha Kassam on preparing for a China-led world
February 25, 2021 11:11 - 53 minutes - 49.4 MBNatasha Kassam of the Lowy Institute joins the podcast this week, to join Darren in facing interrogation from Allan arising from their co-authored essay, published this week in Australian Foreign Affairs (Issue 11) entitled “Future Shock: How to Prepare for a China-led World”. The questions the essay tries to answer are: what would China’s leadership of the international order look like, what does this mean for Australia, and what (if anything) can Australia do to protect its interests? Wha...
Ep. 67: NZ-China-Australia; Myanmar; Xi's WEF speech; Australia-Malaysia CSP
February 05, 2021 20:57 - 40 minutes - 37.8 MBThis week's episode begins with the advice New Zealand’s Trade Minister Damien O’Connor attempted to offer Australia on how to manage bilateral relations with China. Was it helpful, and regardless does Australia have something to learn from the way New Zealand conducts its diplomacy and foreign policy? And what explains the starkly different trajectories of the bilateral relationships Canberra and Wellington have with Beijing? The military has taken power in Myanmar—again—and Allan offers a...
Ep. 66: Revisiting the Capitol; a declassified Indo-Pacific strategy; Five Countries (!), & fresh ideas for Aussie FP?
January 21, 2021 21:02 - 40 minutes - 36.2 MBRecorded the day after Joe Biden’s inauguration as President, Allan and Darren begin the episode by returning to the storming of the U.S. Capitol on 6 January, reflecting on whether their initial assessments need to be updated based on what we now know about the day, and the events since. Next, they discuss a 2018 document outlining the Trump administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy that was declassified (more than 20 years ahead of schedule) by the White House as it was leaving office. Thir...
Ep. 65: Processing events at the U.S. Capitol
January 08, 2021 20:25 - 34 minutes - 32.7 MBFollowing the shocking events on Wednesday 6 January when a mob of Trump supporters (incited by the president) stormed the U.S. Capitol Building, Allan and Darren offer their reactions in this episode recorded in the afternoon of Friday 8th. Above all, does this drama change how they see the short- and medium-term trajectory of the United States? For Allan the events reinforce rather than change views he’s formed over the past four years, while Darren tries, perhaps foolishly, to offer an op...
Ep. 64: A cabinet reshuffle, politician ambassadors, the Richardson Review and summer homework
December 23, 2020 04:07 - 35 minutes - 32.4 MBAllan and Darren begin their final episode of 2020 with the recent cabinet reshuffle, specifically Dan Tehan becoming Minister for Trade and Andrew Hastie becoming Assistant Minister for Defence. Tehan replaces Simon Birmingham, the new Finance Minister, and Allan explains what he most admires about ‘Birmo’, giving Tehan—himself a former diplomat—big shoes to fill. On the Defence side, we now have a Defence Minister, and an Assistant Defence Minister, who have both served in the Australian D...
Ep. 63: Climate change and Australia, with Howard Bamsey
December 16, 2020 05:33 - 50 minutes - 51.3 MBAllan and Darren welcome Professor Howard Bamsey to the podcast, who offers unmatched experience regarding Australia’s international engagement with the issue of climate change. Beginning his professional life in DFAT, Howard has worked in almost all the parts of the Australian government dealing with climate change, including the Departments of the Environment and Climate Change. He has been CEO of the Australian Greenhouse Office, Australia’s special envoy on climate change, the Ambassado...
Ep. 62: A wild week in Australia-China relations
December 02, 2020 01:39 - 25 minutes - 24.1 MBIn this emergency episode, Allan and Darren react to a tumultuous few weeks in Australia’s bilateral relationship with China. Events discussed include: the “14 points” document provided by the Chinese embassy to Australian journalists, new anti-dumping duties on Australian wine, PM Morrison’s speech to a UK think tank, and the hugely controversial image depicting an Australian soldier tweeted out by a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, and the PM’s call for an apology in response. Rele...
Ep. 61: Short- and long-term questions for Australian foreign policy
November 15, 2020 22:15 - 46 minutes - 41.8 MBFeeling particularly reflective as the US electoral process inches toward a conclusion, Allan and Darren chat about what they see as the short- and long-term challenges facing Australian foreign policy. In the short term, the bilateral relationship with China looms largest. Allan makes that case that the Prime Minister (or Foreign Minister) should make a speech clearly outlining Australia’s position, while Darren wonders whether the PM has already said what he wants to say. And what specific...
Ep. 60: US election rapid reactions
November 05, 2020 22:07 - 25 minutes - 23 MBRecorded on Thursday 5th November in the afternoon (Canberra time), as Joe Biden appeared on track for victory in the 2020 US presidential election but had not yet crossed the 270 electoral college vote threshold, Allan and Darren offer their immediate reactions, emotionally and analytically. We thank AIIA intern Mitchell McIntosh for his help with research and audio editing and Rory Stenning for composing our theme music. Relevant links Sam Harris, Making Sense Podcast, Episode 224, "Th...
Ep. 59: Malabar and an emerging balancing coalition; Senator Abetz and loyalty tests; diplomacy and quarantine
October 28, 2020 21:23 - 39 minutes - 33.1 MBThis week’s episode begins with a focus on recent events in Australia’s defence policy space, which both Allan and Darren see as trending towards the formation of a balancing coalition in the region. Australia will join the US, Japan and India in next month’s Malabar exercises, which was announced while Defence Minister Linda Reynolds was in Tokyo to meet with her counterpart. Meanwhile, Australia will no longer send a naval ship to the Middle East – signalling the conclusion of a decades-lo...
Ep. 58: Mailbag! US failures; fearing abandonment; the Quad & democracy; grading China policy; DFAT in 2050
October 11, 2020 05:57 - 50 minutes - 46.6 MBThrilled that the podcast is about to cross the 100,000 lifetime download threshold (thank you all!), Allan and Darren try something new this week – answering mailbag questions. Is the US a ‘failed state’, and would ‘strategic autonomy’ be realistic for Australia? Will the title of Allan’s book on Australian foreign policy, “Fear of abandonment”, be appropriate for the next 70 years of Australian foreign policy? Are there any lessons for Australia and the Indo-Pacific from the recent ‘Abraha...
Ep. 57: Foreign interference & the Australia-China relationship; trilaterals; PM Suga; Thai protests
September 26, 2020 00:11 - 36 minutes - 33.4 MBAllan and Darren return once again to the Australia-China relationship to begin today’s episode. The particular topic is foreign interference, in the wake of accusations by the Chinese government that PRC journalists working in Australia had their homes raided by law enforcement in June. Darren characterises this as an instance where a domestic policy action—here a foreign interference investigation—has obvious foreign policy implications, and asks Allan whether in these types of cases the A...
Ep. 56: Aussie journalists depart China (and other bilateral tensions); Foreign Relations Bill; Abe’s legacy; Tony Abbott
September 10, 2020 07:35 - 49 minutes - 45.4 MBRecording early afternoon on Wednesday 7 September, Allan and Darren begin by grappling with the previous day’s news of the arrival back in Australia of the last two China correspondents from Australian media outlets: the ABC’s Bill Birtles and the AFR’s Mike Smith. Darren tries to piece together his own theory of what happened, and Allan offers some insight on the mechanics behind DFAT’s role in cases like these, both in warning Australians of risks, and then the decision to shelter them, i...
Ep. 55: Richard Maude returns (Part 2): China, models of cooperation, & what Australian foreign policy can do
August 29, 2020 04:00 - 35 minutes - 30.1 MBIn part two of Richard Maude’s return to the podcast, the conversation begins with China. Was Richard “surprised” by Beijing’s promulgation of the Hong Kong National Security Law? Should the Australian government be updating its priors regarding the level of risk China is willing to take, and would such an updating have any policy consequences? What then about Taiwan? A serious Taiwan contingency would not be a surprise—does it pose the greatest challenge for the new strategic objectives out...
Ep. 54: Richard Maude returns (Part 1), and Darren in the Beirut Blast
August 23, 2020 07:26 - 41 minutes - 35.5 MBThis week Allan and Darren welcome back Richard Maude to the podcast, who returns after his first appearance back in February in Episode 41. Until shortly before that first recording, Richard was Deputy Secretary, Indo-Pacific Group, in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Prior to that, he headed the task force responsible for drafting the 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper. From 2013-2016, Richard was Director-General of the Office of National Assessments, and before that he was senio...
Ep. 53: Consulate closures & deteriorating US-China relations; AUSMIN; Defence Strategic Update
August 04, 2020 14:53 - 47 minutes - 38.4 MBOn this week’s episode, the deteriorating relationship between Washington and Beijing takes centre stage, including the consulate closures in Houston and Chengdu. What’s going on, and why now? How much is this all about American electoral politics, and does that even matter? Perhaps most important, how much of the trajectory of the relationship is the result of the Trump administration specifically—and could be changed if Joe Biden wins in November—and how much is structural and will persist...
Ep. 52: ABC journalist Stephen Dziedzic on reporting Australian foreign policy, media-govt relations, and the Wolverines
July 18, 2020 07:44 - 52 minutes - 45.7 MBAllan and Darren welcome Stephen Dziedzic to the podcast, who covers foreign affairs in the Asia Pacific region for Australia’s national broadcaster, the ABC, based at Parliament House in Canberra. Stephen has spent more than a decade at the ABC, including five years covering federal politics. He also spent two years working for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade at the Australian High Commission in New Delhi. The way the media covers international affairs and Australian foreign po...
Ep 51: Lowy Poll 2020; India-China; DFAT's travel advice for China; Allan's brush with tabloid fame
July 04, 2020 06:02 - 35 minutes - 30.7 MBAs Allan and Darren commence with their next 50 episodes, they begin with the 2020 Lowy Poll. Allan in particular is interested in the rise in Australians saying they do not feel safe, and Darren wonders what impact this will have on public attitudes towards security policy. Meanwhile, Darren is interested whether the poll reflects the sentiments expressed in PM Morrison's "negative globalism" speech last year. Tensions at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) that represents the disputed borde...
Frances Adamson, DFAT Secretary, on our 50th episode
June 24, 2020 20:45 - 59 minutes - 39.8 MBOn the occasion of the podcast’s 50th episode, Allan and Darren are thrilled to welcome Australia’s most senior diplomat and foreign policy official, Frances Adamson, the Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the first woman to hold this appointment. The interview was conducted on Wednesday 17 June 2020. Immediately prior to her appointment as Secretary in August 2016, Frances was International Adviser to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. From 2011 to 2015, she was Ambass...
Ep. 49: US turmoil; India CSP; G-7; WHO lessons; HK; Australian geoeconomics
June 14, 2020 02:50 - 47 minutes - 33.4 MBAfter a month away from the news, this episode Allan and Darren try to catch up. They begin with tragedy and turmoil in the United States. What do the protests and racial tensions—and Trump’s efforts to handle them—say about the US? Are there any implications for Australia? Turning next to recent events in Australian foreign policy, we now have a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with India—is this significant? And what should PM Morrison do about President Trump’s invitation to the (delay...
Ep. 48: Harinder Sidhu, former High Commissioner to India, on the Australia-India relationship
June 02, 2020 03:33 - 42 minutes - 29.7 MBAllan and Darren welcome Harinder Sidhu to the podcast to discuss India and Australia-India relations. A Deputy Secretary in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Harinder recently returned from a posting as the Australian High Commissioner in New Delhi. Before she went to India, Harinder headed the multilateral division of DFAT while Australia was on the UN Security Council. Prior to that, she spent time in the Department of Climate Change, the Office of National Assessments, and the...
Ep. 47: Heather Smith on fixing the G20, industrial policy, tech competition, and what economists get wrong
May 13, 2020 20:45 - 49 minutes - 30.1 MBAllan and Darren welcome Dr Heather Smith PSM to the podcast. Until January 2020, Heather was Secretary of the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science, which followed serving as Secretary of the Department of Communications and the Arts. Before that she was a Deputy Secretary in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (including serving as G20 Sherpa in 2014 when Australia held the G20 Presidency) and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, as well as a Deputy Director Gener...
Ep. 46: Australia-China tensions over a Covid-19 inquiry
May 06, 2020 10:25 - 35 minutes - 24.8 MBThis week Allan and Darren devote the entire episode to a wild and very tense few weeks in the bilateral relationship between Australia and China. These events kicked off with Foreign Minister Marise Payne’s call for an inquiry into China’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak, and snowballed from there, in particular with an interview conducted by China’s ambassador to Australia, duelling press releases from the Chinese embassy and DFAT, and interventions from mining magnate Andrew “Twiggy”...
Ep. 45: The WHO; “mask diplomacy”; DFAT & Covid-19
April 23, 2020 04:19 - 31 minutes - 22.2 MBCovid-19 remains central to the news this week. Allan and Darren begin with President Trump’s decision to freeze U.S. funding to the World Health Organization, and assess the validity his criticisms. Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne has proposed an inquiry, but is there even an alternative? And does this case tell us anything new about great power rivalry and the future of the international order? Darren is curious to explore the concept of “mask diplomacy”, a term used to describe...
Ep. 44: The United States, and the alliance
April 09, 2020 04:13 - 45 minutes - 30 MBThis week Allan and Darren try to step back from Covid-19, and have a long-planned conversation about the United States: its domestic politics, its role in the world, and the state of the alliance relationship with Australia. Allan begins by asking Darren for his assessment of what’s happening inside the US right now, amid an upcoming presidential election, the challenge of the coronavirus, and of course the non-stop news cycle that is the Trump presidency. How much will Covid-19 affect the ...
Ep. 43: The consequences of Covid-19
March 28, 2020 05:57 - 32 minutes - 25.2 MBCovid-19 will have a profound long-term impact on the world, both within countries and internationally. In this episode, Allan and Darren make some guesses as to how the world will look different after this crisis has passed, and how Australia can position itself accordingly. They begin with the global balance of power: will China emerge as the big “winner”, or could the US rehabilitate its leadership credentials (in particular if Joe Biden wins the presidency in November)? Prime Minister S...
Ep. 42: Covid-19 update; ASIO speaks; Morrison hosts Jokowi & Ardern
March 09, 2020 19:26 - 39 minutes - 26.4 MBAllan and Darren commence with an update on the novel coronavirus, now called Covid-19. How should we evaluate China’s handling of the outbreak? Given the struggles of some democratic systems—the United States in particular—is an authoritarian approach best for public health crises? Allan attended a recent speech by Labor parliamentarian Tim Watts on the health of Australia's democracy, and Watts' argument resonates here. Staying in Australia, the Morrison government has been on the front fo...
Ep. 41: Richard Maude on the Indo-Pacific, models of world politics, and Australian foreign policy
February 27, 2020 19:03 - 49 minutes - 33.9 MBThis week Allan and Darren interview Richard Maude, who needs no introduction to regular observers of Australian foreign policy. Until recently, Richard was Deputy Secretary, Indo-Pacific Group, in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Prior to that, he headed the task force responsible for drafting the 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper. From 2013-2016, Richard was Director-General of the Office of National Assessments, and before that he was senior adviser on foreign policy and nationa...
Ep. 40: Coronavirus; Huawei in the UK; the WTO, and UK / EU trade deals
February 09, 2020 22:49 - 38 minutes - 26.8 MBAllan and Darren begin this episode with Australia’s response to the novel coronavirus, including the government’s efforts to evacuate Australians from Wuhan, the decision not to charge evacuees, and the decision to the bar entry into Australia of foreigners who have been in or travelled through China. Darren then wonders whether the variation across countries in the response to the virus—notably the hostility of Cambodia’s Prime Minister to wearing masks—is connected to China’s influence. ...
Ep. 39: The 2020 Raisina Dialogue
January 29, 2020 19:30 - 34 minutes - 23.5 MBAllan and Darren try something different this episode, with Allan taking the lead in asking Darren about his experience attending the Raisina Dialogue, India’s flagship international affairs conference, held in New Delhi from 14-16 January 2020, and organised the Observer Research Foundation. The conversation begins with an introduction to Raisina and comparisons with the Shangri-La Dialogue. Allan then asks Darren what his major takeaways were, starting with the current strategic debate in...
Ep. 38: Gordon de Brouwer on economics vs security, climate change, and effective policymaking
January 15, 2020 20:00 - 41 minutes - 29.3 MBIn an episode recorded in the second week of December 2019, Allan and Darren welcome Gordon de Brouwer PSM onto the podcast. Gordon has a distinguished public service career in the fields of economics, the environment, energy and international institution building. From 2013-2017 Gordon was Secretary of the Department of Environment and Energy. Prior to that he had been Associate Secretary in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, including as Australia’s G20 Sherpa at the time the G2...
Ep. 37: The bushfires, internationally; the Soleimani killing; reviewing 2019, looking ahead to 2020
January 09, 2020 19:30 - 41 minutes - 27.3 MBIn their first episode recorded in the new year, Allan and Darren begin with the news. First, they take an international perspective on the catastrophic Australian bushfires, which have become a truly global disaster. How will the bushfires affect Australia’s image and diplomacy abroad, and what about the government’s policy agenda on climate change? Could domestic politics swamp other aspects of Australia’s international agenda? Are there any silver linings from the generosity being shown b...
Ep. 36: Ex-ASIO head Duncan Lewis (Part 2): foreign interference and national security policymaking in Australia
December 19, 2019 18:30 - 50 minutes - 34.6 MBIn Part 2 of our exclusive interview with Duncan Lewis AO, DSC, CSC, the recently retired head of ASIO, the conversation turns to the more recent challenge of foreign interference. Duncan has been quoted recently as describing foreign interference as an “existential threat to the nation”, and so Allan begins by asking Duncan to explain how he thinks about foreign interference in Australian politics, and how he would describe its impact. Darren looks to draw some contrasts between how Austral...
Ep. 35: Ex-ASIO head Duncan Lewis (Part 1): on his military & govt career, and the challenge of terrorism
December 18, 2019 04:58 - 45 minutes - 32.4 MBIn a first for the podcast, we present our first double episode, an exclusive interview with Duncan Lewis AO, DSC, CSC who until recently was Australia’s Director General of Security, leading ASIO, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation. In this first part, Allan and Darren discuss Duncan’s remarkable career, which as Allan notes is unique in terms of his experience in senior national security positions. Much of Duncan’s career has been focused on the challenge of terrorism, and t...
Ep. 34: All things China (again)! Defectors? Sleeper agents? MP visas & Hong Kong
November 29, 2019 09:24 - 45 minutes - 41.8 MBIt is simply impossible to ignore China-related news stories in Australia this week, and so Allan and Darren do their best to grapple with the twin bombshell stories of a Chinese defector and asylum seeker, Wang “William” Liqiang, who claims to have information on the activities of Chinese intelligence, and a (now-deceased) individual, Nick Zhao, who reported to ASIO that he was approached to run for the Australian federal parliament. Along the way, a recent speech by former Prime Minister P...
Ep. 33: US leadership: vision vs reality; RCEP; human rights in China; Syria, the Kurds and US credibility
November 07, 2019 08:23 - 40 minutes - 35.6 MBAllan and Darren kick off this week’s episode by covering a bad week for the United States’ Indo-Pacific strategy at the ASEAN and East Asia Summit meetings in Bangkok. Meanwhile Australia’s Defence Minister Linda Reynolds delivered a constructive speech in Washington DC setting out a vision for precisely what the United States ought to be doing. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade agreement appears set to become a reality, albeit without the participation of India. ...
Ep. 32: The Australia-China Relationship
October 22, 2019 21:25 - 34 minutes - 32.9 MBOn this week’s episode, Allan and Darren look to have a broader discussion about China, anchoring the conversation around Allan’s recent article in Australian Foreign Affairs, “History hasn’t ended: How to handle China”. On the larger and longer term questions surrounding the Australia-China relationship, Allan argues that Australia indeed has an effective but under-appreciated way of approaching China, to weigh up interests and values and use those interests and values as stakes in our rela...
Ep. 31: Debating PM Morrison’s Lowy Lecture
October 04, 2019 21:40 - 26 minutes - 23.7 MBAllan and Darren attempt their first “emergency” episode, recorded on Friday 4 October, the day after Prime Minister Morrison delivered the 2019 Lowy Lecture at the Sydney Town Hall. The conversation is structured around a commentary Allan wrote for the Lowy Interpreter that same day, in which he argues that the speech “marked a clear step away from the sort of Australian foreign policy articulated in the government’s 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper and towards the worldview of Trumpism and ...