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. 30: Australia’s High Commissioners to Solomon Islands and Samoa discuss diplomacy in the Pacific
October 01, 2019 19:44 - 49 minutes - 44.9 MBIn this special episode, Allan and Darren interview two of Australia’s currently serving ambassadors: Rod Brazier, High Commissioner to Solomon Islands, and Sara Moriarty, High Commissioner to Samoa. As Allan notes in his welcome, the podcast to date has not focused as much on “the role of the overseas network of Australian diplomatic posts, which provide the essential diplomatic transmission belt between Canberra and the world; articulating and advocating for Australian views and interests ...
Ep. 29: PM Morrison visits the Trump White House; prisoners in Iran; energy security; a visit by Fiji’s PM; climate change
September 24, 2019 06:25 - 43 minutes - 37.8 MBOn this week’s episode, Allan and Darren focus on Prime Minister Morrison’s official state visit to the United States this past week and his meetings with Donald Trump at the White House. What is a “state visit”, what could the PM hope to achieve, and what landmines did he need to dodge? In light of a rather extraordinary press conference in the Oval Office, how did Morrison perform overall? And who is Australia’s chief diplomat: the PM or the Foreign Minister? The conversation then turns to...
Ep. 28: PM’s trips to Vietnam & the G7; alliance management in the Gulf; Kashmir; PNG
September 08, 2019 20:00 - 40 minutes - 32.9 MBAllan and Darren kick off this episode by discussing Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s recent overseas trip. The PM’s first stop was Vietnam for a bilateral visit. Although China loomed over proceedings, it was never directly called out - does this matter? And is it significant that Australia is becoming "mates" with a country with very different political values? Next was France, where President Macron had invited Morrison to be an observer at the G7 leaders’ summit. Was this a big deal, and ...
Ep. 27: Clare Walsh, DFAT Deputy Secretary on multilateralism, aid and development
August 28, 2019 20:00 - 44 minutes - 61.1 MBIn the final of our recent series of interviews recorded in July, we speak to Clare Walsh, Deputy Secretary for the Global Cooperation, Development and Partnerships Group with Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Clare’s large portfolio covers Australia’s global engagement, in particular our multilateral diplomacy, foreign aid program and thematic issues as diverse as infrastructure, climate change and gender. In a wide-ranging discussion, Clare begins the interview by expla...
Ep. 26: AUSMIN; Hastie op-ed; HK protests in Australia; Pacific Islands Forum
August 20, 2019 20:00 - 47 minutes - 41.8 MBIn a full episode, Allan and Darren return to the perennial topics of Australian foreign policy—our relationships with the United States and China, with events of recent weeks offering yet another illustration of how complex and challenging these relations are. As a result of the US Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense visiting Sydney for AUSMIN in early August, Australia was asked to contribute to (another) military operation in the Middle East, a very controversial proposal for stat...
Ep. 25: David Gruen, Australia’s G20 Sherpa
August 01, 2019 19:39 - 50 minutes - 69.9 MBThis episode we are pleased to present another interview with a senior Australian policymaker. Dr. David Gruen is Deputy Secretary, Economic at the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and Australia’s G20 Sherpa. David is an economist and has previously worked at the Australian Treasury and the Reserve Bank of Australia. The discussion therefore revolves around the economic dimensions of Australia’s place in the world and international affairs generally. Allan begins the interview ...
Ep. 24: Director-General of ASIS in his first ever interview
July 24, 2019 13:58 - 49 minutes - 68.2 MBThis episode we present an exclusive interview with Paul Symon AO, Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, ASIS. As Australia’s “top spook”, Paul is the only member of his organisation who can legally be identified. Indeed, the existence of ASIS was not publicly acknowledged until 1977 and not brought under formal legislation until 2001. This is a great privilege for us because this is the first time Paul has ever given a public interview. Bearing in mind “the inevi...
Ep. 23: Morrison’s Asialink-Bloomberg speech; Lowy Poll; G20
July 07, 2019 22:16 - 36 minutes - 50 MBOn this week’s episode, Allan and Darren kick things off with an in-depth discussion of Australian Prime Minister’s Scott Morrison's recent foreign policy speech, delivered a few days before his attendance at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Osaka. Darren asks Allan to situate the speech in Morrison’s trajectory as Prime Minister, and to describe how speeches like this are prepared. The substance itself was especially fascinating, including China’s apparent new status as a “great and powerful frie...
Ep. 22: Hong Kong protests; Shangri-La Dialogue; US-Iran tensions
June 24, 2019 05:15 - 35 minutes - 48.8 MBAllan and Darren commence this episode by discussing the enormous protests in Hong Kong against a proposed extradition law. How has Australia viewed Hong Kong’s trajectory prior to and following its handover to the PRC in 1997, and up to the present? Is it surprising that the Hong Kong government backed down, and what do these events tell us about Hong Kong’s future? Do other governments, including Australia’s, have any capacity to shape what will happen? The Shangri-La dialogue is next on ...
Ep. 21: Interview with Rebecca Skinner, Associate Secretary at Defence
June 06, 2019 20:08 - 40 minutes - 55.9 MBWe are very excited to bring you a special interview this episode with Rebecca Skinner, Associate Secretary of Australia’s Department of Defence, and therefore one of the most senior women working on Australia’s national security. It is a wide-ranging conversation that covers topics including the nature of the Associate Secretary role, civil-military relationships inside the department, the never-ending question of reform, gender issues, and contrasts between private and public sector organi...
Ep. 20: Huawei and decoupling; PNG; four elections; new ambassadors; Bob Hawke
May 30, 2019 08:07 - 42 minutes - 57.7 MBIt’s been a busy few weeks in Australia and the world, and in a full episode Allan and Darren begin with the restrictions announced by the Trump Administration on the sale of technology to Huawei, and what this means for US-China competition. They pivot closer to home to Papua New Guinea and the resignation of its Prime Minister. Next, they reflect upon four election results: Australia, India, Indonesia and the European Union, and then turn to the announcement of two new Australian Ambassado...
Ep. 19: An incoming government brief: What will the election winner face in the new term?
May 15, 2019 09:08 - 40 minutes - 55.9 MBWith the Australian federal election happening on Saturday 18 May, in this episode Allan and Darren follow the practice of all government departments in preparing an “incoming government brief”: a document presented to the new (or returning) minister for each department, for the purpose of providing a descriptive overview of what the department does, and highlighting the most important issues facing that particular portfolio as the new term commences. Allan and Darren’s brief contains three...
Ep. 18: Terrorism and counter-terrorism in the wake of the Sri Lanka attacks
May 05, 2019 08:20 - 30 minutes - 42.2 MBIn the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday, Allan and Darren focus this episode on understanding and responding to the challenges posed by these types of attacks. How has Sri Lanka typically been viewed through the lens of Australian foreign policy, and do these attacks change that? How should we understand these attacks through the lens of the broader challenge of Islamic extremism and what policy responses are available? What role do DFAT and other security age...
Ep. 17: Geoeconomics; Australia’s consular operations
April 19, 2019 05:29 - 34 minutes - 47.7 MBOn this week’s episode, Allan and Darren begin on the topic of geoeconomics, which is a core focus of Darren’s research. Allan first offers his practitioner’s perspective on the definition and context of the term, with Darren following with his academic view. Both recognise that nation-states have long been practicing geoeconomic activities, but that the increasing prominence of the term very much reflects the particular challenges of the present moment. A recent Wall Street Journal story on...
Ep. 16: Brexit, more Brexit, & new funding for Australia-China relations
April 05, 2019 19:28 - 40 minutes - 55.5 MBWe delayed discussing Brexit until after the 29 March 2019 “deadline”, but that day came and went with no further clarity on what will happen, and the show must go on! Allan and Darren discuss this incredibly complex issue along multiple dimensions. They begin with a contextual analysis of the European Union, with Allan offering a view through the lens of Australian foreign policy, while Darren provides an academic perspective on logic of the EU as an international institution. Allan evaluat...
Ep. 15: Towards reinvigorating Australian foreign policy studies (LIVE @ ANU)
March 18, 2019 04:00 - 1 hour - 52.4 MBWe are delighted to bring you a special edition of the podcast, a recording of a live event at which Allan Gygnell moderated a panel discussion on the topic: “Towards reinvigorating Australian foreign policy studies”. The 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper highlighted how forces of change are challenging the rules-based global order upon which Australia’s security and prosperity has depended since the Second World War. At this moment of uncertainty in Australian foreign policy, how well-equipp...
Ep. 14: North Korea after Hanoi; India-Pakistan crisis deescalates; Indonesian FTA
March 14, 2019 21:33 - 46 minutes - 63.6 MBThe impact of nuclear weapons is the major theme this week. Darren begins by asking Allan for his practitioner’s perspective on the question whether nukes are a stabilising force in international affairs. The discussion then moves to North Korea: what were Allan’s expectations in the leadup to the recent summit in Hanoi between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, and where does the world stand now? Are we in a better position on this issue than we were when Trump took office? Does it matter that K...
Ep. 13: Five eyes and 5G infrastructure; problems for Aussie coal
March 01, 2019 05:35 - 35 minutes - 49.4 MBThis week Allan and Darren begin their discussion with a focus on the Five Eyes intelligence grouping, which has been thrust into the limelight after US Secretary of State Pompeo’s warning that allowing Huawei’s participation in 5G infrastructure could jeopardise intelligence cooperation. Allan explains the history and purpose of the grouping, and both question what United States can and should be trying to achieve on this issue. Australian coal exports are next on the agenda, the question ...
Ep. 12: What we learned from 2018, looking ahead to 2019
February 19, 2019 20:28 - 33 minutes - 45.9 MBIn this first podcast recording of 2019, Allan Gyngell and Darren Lim use the opportunity provided by the new year to look back at 2018 and ask how the events of the past 12 months have shaped their worldviews. Allan focuses on the speed in which the international system is changing, while Darren wonders at the extent to which political institutions are able to moderate some of the wilder swings in politics and policy within democracies across the globe. On the topic of Australia’s performa...
Ep. 11: Dennis Richardson
January 08, 2019 18:00 - 48 minutes - 26.1 MBIn this very special episode of the podcast (the final recording of 2018), Allan and Darren interview Dennis Richardson, one of the most distinguished public servants in Australia’s history. Dennis is the only person to have served in the following positions: Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister (Bob Hawke); Director General of Security (including during the 9/11 attacks); Australian Ambassador to the United States; and Secretary to both the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the De...
Ep. 10: ASPI’s Danielle Cave and Tom Uren on “cyber”
December 13, 2018 19:22 - 1 hour - 35.2 MBIn the penultimate episode of Australia in the World for 2018, Darren interviews Danielle Cave and Tom Uren, both of whom work on cyber issues at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI). The conversation (recorded in late October) steers away from the current news of the day, instead taking a macro perspective on this emerging issue. What does the term “cyber” even mean? Why should Australian policymakers, and indeed ordinary Australians, care about the issue? What are the major pol...
Ep. 9: US-China rivalry through the lens of regional summitry
November 29, 2018 10:44 - 47 minutes - 28.3 MBIn this final current events-related podcast for 2018, Allan and Darren discuss the recent round of regional summits, including the ASEAN Summit, the East Asia Summit and the APEC meetings. The mid-November week of summitry captures very well the essence of the current rivalry between the United States and China, and the challenges this poses for Australia and other states in the region. Their discussion covers the significance of President Trump’s absence, contrasts the different approaches...
Ep. 8: Australian foreign policy speeches, China and Australia's South Pacific pivot/balance, Victoria on the Belt and Road, US midterms and Brazil’s new president
November 14, 2018 11:14 - 55 minutes - 127 MBIt has been a busy few weeks for international affairs, and this week Allan and Darren cover three pairs of issues. To begin, a pair of foreign policy speeches by PM Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten. Next, the two discuss Foreign Minister Marise Payne’s first visit to China, pairing that with the Australian government’s raft of new initiatives for engagement with the South Pacific, what Darren is (affectionately) terming the “South Pacific Pivot / Rebalance”. The conversatio...
Ep. 7: Jerusalem and the Iran nuclear deal, Khashoggi and Myanmar, Trump vs. the INF and UPU, and quieter Australian diplomacy
November 01, 2018 20:08 - 37 minutes - 86 MBAllan and Darren cover four issues in this latest episode. They begin by discussing the announcement by Prime Minister Morrison, in the lead-up to the recent Wentworth by-election, that the government would review its long-standing policy regarding whether Jerusalem should recognised as the capital of Israel, as well as Australia’s support for the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal. Next, using the killing of Jamal Khashoggi and Australia’s sanctioning of individuals in the Myanmar military as entr...
Ep. 6: Mike Pence’s Hudson Institute speech and the state of Sino-US relations
October 18, 2018 11:21 - 33 minutes - 77.1 MBAllan and Darren devote the bulk of this episode to Sino-US relations in the context of Vice President Mike Pence’s recent speech at the Hudson Institute. They discuss the primary audience for the speech and the significance of the fact that it was Pence, and not Donald Trump, who delivered it. Darren asks Allan to evaluate the “bet” the West made in the 1990s and early 2000s to try to integrate China into the US-led international order, Allan discusses the risks of trying to “other” China, ...
Ep. 5: UN General Assembly Meetings; US-China trade war; Australian foreign aid
October 04, 2018 04:05 - 46 minutes - 106 MBIn this fifth episode of the podcast, Allan and Darren begin by describing their recent overseas trips—Allan to Beijing, and Darren to Seoul. The analysis of recent events opens with a focus on the recent leaders’ meetings at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. Donald Trump made the most headlines by bringing his “America First” doctrine to the heart of global multilateralism, and Darren asks about the extent to which we should attach any significance to this fact. The d...
Ep. 4: Change at the top; Huawei and 5G, PM Morrison to Indonesia
September 06, 2018 06:54 - 37 minutes - 85.9 MBIn this fourth episode, Allan and Darren discuss how the chaos that led to Scott Morrison replacing Malcolm Turnbull as Prime Minister may affect Australian foreign policy, both in terms of overall policy direction and how Australia is perceived abroad. They also discuss the impact of leadership change on Australia’s foreign policy bureaucracy, before reflecting on Julie Bishop’s legacy as foreign minister. The other major event from the past few weeks was the Australian government’s effect...
Ep. 3: Turnbull’s “China reset” speech, Australia’s soft power review, and interview with Miles Kupa
August 23, 2018 06:19 - 47 minutes - 54.8 MBIn the third episode of the Australia in the World podcast, AIIA National President Allan Gyngell and ANU academic Darren Lim discuss the efforts of Prime Minister (at the time of recording) Malcolm Turnbull to “reset” bilateral relations with China in a recent speech, and the topic of Australia’s soft power, in light of a review announced by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop. Allan and Darren then welcome the podcast’s first ever guest, Miles Kupa, to discuss Malaysia and Indonesia. Miles Kupa...
Episode 1: The rules-based international order with Allan Gyngell and Darren Lim
August 17, 2018 02:37 - 32 minutes - 45.2 MBIn the pilot episode of the “Australia in the world” podcast, the Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) National President Allan Gyngell and the ANU's Dr Darren Lim discuss the rules-based international order and the priorities and challenges facing Australia as it seeks to shore up this key pillar of its foreign policy. The rules-based order was the subject of conference on Australia and the Rules-Based International Order held on 18-19 July organised by the Australian Instit...
Episode 2: Elections in Pakistan and Cambodia, the new trilateral infrastructure investment fund, and how worried should Australia be about the United States?
August 09, 2018 21:59 - 49 minutes - 27.6 MBIn the second episode of the new Australia in the World podcast, AIIA National President Allan Gyngell and ANU academic Darren Lim discuss recent elections in Pakistan and Cambodia, a new trilateral investment fund announced by the United States, Japan and Australia, and the recent AUSMIN talks. The discussion finishes with a deeper dive into the topic of how worried Australia should be about the decline of the United States. Allan’s bio: https://www.internationalaffairs.org.au/about-us/...