AUSTRALIAN FOREIGN POLICY CONTINUITY AND SHIFT

This article surveys continuities and adjustments in Australian foreign policy through the 1980s, framing Canberra as a middle power navigating alliance obligations, regional integration, and domestic economic reform. It reviews the strategic logic of ANZUS ties alongside efforts to deepen relationships in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific. Economic diplomacy—trade liberalization, commodity diversification, and services growth—is analyzed as the backbone for influence, while defense policy is discussed in terms of self-reliance, surveillance investments, and joint exercises. The paper argues that policy coherence stemmed from layering: preserving core alliance benefits while incrementally expanding autonomous regional initiatives and multilateral activism.

The body details bureaucratic coordination between foreign affairs, defense, and treasury that translated political objectives into integrated white papers and budget choices. Case studies cover regional peacekeeping contributions, fisheries and environmental regimes, and trade initiatives that positioned Australia as a rule-shaping actor. It evaluates domestic constraints—terms-of-trade volatility, protectionist legacies, and public expectations on alliance solidarity—and explains how narrative framing emphasized pragmatic independence within alliance structures. The article also assesses relations with New Zealand post-ANZUS tensions, Pacific Islands engagement, and links with ASEAN, highlighting risk management through confidence-building and aid partnerships. Concluding sections argue that durable influence arises from credible capabilities at home, dependable alliance behavior, and consistent regional presence, a triad that allowed policy to adjust to shocks without dislocating long-standing strategic anchors.