Covid-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 Scott Morrison said in parliament this week that Australia would prove that liberal democracies can cope with a challenge liked Covid-19. Is there a battle of “narratives” between democratic and authoritarian systems? With borders closing and economies slowing dramatically, advocates of sovereignty must be pleased—how will the crisis feed into the trend towards a greater reassertion of sovereignty, the decoupling phenomenon, and the greater willingness of governments to intervene in markets? And what about the rules-based order which, aged in its mid-70s and with underlying health conditions, is in a high risk category to fall victim to the coronavirus?
Finally, Allan offers some thoughts about how the practice of diplomacy might change, and both he and Darren consider how the Australian government ought to be planning for a post Covid-19 world.
As always, we invite our listeners to email us at this address: australia.world.pod@gmail.com We welcome feedback, requests and suggestions. You can also contact Darren on twitter @limdarrenj
We thank new AIIA intern Maddie Gordon for her help with research and audio editing, XC Chong and Isabel Hancock for research support and Rory Stenning for composing our theme music.
Relevant links
Scott Morrison, Ministerial Statement, 23 March 2020: https://www.pm.gov.au/media/ministerial-statement-australian-parliament-house-act
Hilary Mantel, The Mirror and the Light: https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780007480999/the-mirror-and-the-light/
Ep. 32: The Australia-China Relationship
Ep. 31: Debating PM Morrison’s Lowy Lecture
Ep. 30: Australia’s High Commissioners to Solomon Islands and Samoa discuss diplomacy in the Pacific
Ep. 29: PM Morrison visits the Trump White House; prisoners in Iran; energy security; a visit by Fiji’s PM; climate change
Ep. 28: PM’s trips to Vietnam & the G7; alliance management in the Gulf; Kashmir; PNG
Ep. 27: Clare Walsh, DFAT Deputy Secretary on multilateralism, aid and development
Ep. 26: AUSMIN; Hastie op-ed; HK protests in Australia; Pacific Islands Forum
Ep. 25: David Gruen, Australia’s G20 Sherpa
Ep. 24: Director-General of ASIS in his first ever interview
Ep. 23: Morrison’s Asialink-Bloomberg speech; Lowy Poll; G20
Ep. 22: Hong Kong protests; Shangri-La Dialogue; US-Iran tensions
Ep. 21: Interview with Rebecca Skinner, Associate Secretary at Defence
Ep. 20: Huawei and decoupling; PNG; four elections; new ambassadors; Bob Hawke
Ep. 19: An incoming government brief: What will the election winner face in the new term?
Ep. 18: Terrorism and counter-terrorism in the wake of the Sri Lanka attacks
Ep. 17: Geoeconomics; Australia’s consular operations
Ep. 16: Brexit, more Brexit, & new funding for Australia-China relations
Ep. 15: Towards reinvigorating Australian foreign policy studies (LIVE @ ANU)
Ep. 14: North Korea after Hanoi; India-Pakistan crisis deescalates; Indonesian FTA
Ep. 13: Five eyes and 5G infrastructure; problems for Aussie coal
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