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AUSTRALIA’S DIPLOMATIC DEFICIT
Reinvesting in our instruments of international policy
‘The choice for Australia
is between accepting the
required costs of effective
overseas representation or
accepting less independence
for the country as a whole, a
greater need to accommodate
to circumstances influenced
or determined by others, and
ultimately a greater risk to its
values and its value system,
and to its material welfare.’
Department of Foreign Affairs,
Review of Australia’s overseas
representation, 1986
in new ways to tackle new problems and to create new opportunities. A
relatively modest reinvestment in Australia’s diplomatic infrastructure
– especially when compared with spending on national security – can
broaden our national horizons, magnify our influence and equip
Australia to make a bigger difference in the world.
The structure of this report
Do we have the international policy instruments we need? Are their
roles clear and do they have the resources necessary to implement our
international policy effectively? How can we improve the processes for
developing our international policy? Are there new approaches we can
bring to the international challenges facing Australia?
This report seeks to answer these questions.
Part 1 looks at Australia, its engagement with the world and how
it has traditionally sought to shape its international environment.
It then considers changes in the international system and in the
nature of government – many of them driven by globalisation – and
their implications for how Australia goes about implementing its
international policy.
Part 2 reviews the instruments available to government to shape our
international environment in Australia’s national interest. It considers
existing structures, processes and capabilities and the resources
allocated to them. Direct international comparisons are always
difficult, but the report draws some broad conclusions about how
Australia’s instruments of international policy compare with those of
similar countries.
Part 3 looks at what should be done to adapt Australia’s instruments
of international policy to these changes. It makes a number of
recommendations about steps that could be taken to ensure that they
are able to meet the challenges that are likely to confront us as a nation
during the 21 st century.
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