In his essay “History Hasn’t Ended” (AFA7: China Dependence), Allan Gyngell writes that China’s rise is testing the “sensible centrist consensus” that has long prevailed among Australia’s foreign policy establishment. He wants to defend that consensus and make the case for “foreign policy” as the remedy for Australia’s China-induced anxieties.
The thing about foreign policy, though, is that those sitting at the table tend to keep their cards close to their chests. A country’s actual foreign policy, its negotiating points and red lines, and its view of other parties’ interests and intentions, are not always things to be aired publicly.
