Friday (September 17th): Morrison Foreign Policy

Scott Morrison

Name? Scott Morrison

Westphalian identity? Australian

Age? 53

Why is he in the news? Prime Scott Minister Morrison announced a new trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States called AUKUS. The central promise of this pact is the development of nuclear-powered submarines for the Australian Navy to increase Western military presence in the Pacific.

Why do we care? Australia has been outspoken against some of China’s activities in the past. Whether it was about Hong Kong, the origin of Covid, or China’s presence in the region, Morrison has been rather vocal for a nation so small and partly dependent on trade with China. This security pact marks another affront against the Chinese, confirming Morrison’s ties are with his Western allies.

Why should you care? The Afghanistan exit and this security pact mark a clear shift of US foreign policy focus away from the Middle East towards and towards the Pacific, something President Biden has been pushing for a while now. While the US was busy playing world police in the Middle East, China grew to become a global power. A major shift in foreign policy focus should make you care 9/10.

Who else cares? French President Emmanuel Macron. He was furious about this new alliance. Five years ago, Morrison started this project with the French, promising an investment of 60 billion dollars to develop submarines. But because France did not want to provide the Australians with nuclear-powered submarines, Morrison changed plans last minute, leaving France out of the deal entirely. 

Any further comments? Not only is Macron furious about Morrison’s decision to create AUKUS, but the Chinese are not too happy either. Speaking of NATO-like alliances in the region, the Chinese condemned this new pact and at the same time issued a warning to Morrison: Any nuclear capabilities installed by the US on these submarines would include Australia as a target in nuclear war scenarios and put Australians in danger.

Joshua Dario Hasenstab

General Coordinator