All posts by Melissa Conley Tyler
Albanese government launches new strategy for ties with Southeast Asia
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here. In Jakarta today, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will release Australia’s Southeast Asia Economic Strategy to 2040, which sets a more active government role in promoting trade and investment links. While Australia is using all elements of statecraft to…
As Timor-Leste heads to the polls, here’s how Australia can support its democracy
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here. Sunday May 21 is election day in Timor-Leste, when voters decide on 65 members of parliament to represent them. Each election is a reminder of the successful regional and international cooperation that led to Timor-Leste’s independence. It’s also…
Steadying foreign aid budget signals the government takes development seriously
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here. On budget night in 2014, the Abbott government cut nearly $8 billion from Australia’s international development program, the largest-ever aid cuts. Programs in South-East Asia were cut by 30%. For a government obsessed with surplus, it was seen…
Australia should not overstate the threat of China in the Pacific, and mend relationships in the region
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here. The signing of a security agreement between Solomon Islands and China in April 2022 brought geopolitical competition and militarisation in the Pacific to the fore of public discussion. Australian policymakers and the public are concerned about the potential…