Australia Yearbook - 2001

94 Year Book Australia 2001
Australia’s defence capability is significant in
regional terms. Australia has a broadly based
alliance relationship with the United States,
whose strategic engagement and commitment
underwrite the stability of East Asia. Australia also
shares a close and expanding partnership with
Japan, the most powerful economy in East Asia.
Australia’s bilateral
relationships
As a nation with global interests, Australia deals
with countries in many regions. Each relationship
engages Australian interests in different ways.
Each is significant, and Australia does not seek to
ascribe a strict hierarchy of importance to them.
This is not to suggest that the interests Australia
pursues with each country are equally important,
or that Australia devotes equal resources to each
of them. The countries which most substantially
engage Australia’s interests are those which are
influential in their own right in shaping Australia’s
strategic environment, as well as being significant
trading and investment partners. Foremost
among these are the three major powers and
largest economies of the Asia-Pacific region—the
United States, Japan and China—and Australia’s
largest neighbour, Indonesia. Significant
Australian interests are also engaged in Australia’s
relationships with the Republic of Korea, the
other states of the Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN) and, in the South Pacific, New
Zealand and Papua New Guinea.
United States
Australia shares a relationship with the United
States based on a strong commitment to
democracy, security and an open trading system.
The relationship complements and reinforces
Australia’s practical commitment to the Asia
Pacific, as well as strengthening the engagement
of the United States in the region, an engagement
which has assumed great importance as the
countries of the Asia Pacific, particularly those in
East Asia, continue to undergo change.
These shared strategic interests and values are
underpinned by the dynamic trade and
investment links between Australia and the
United States. The United States is Australia’s
second largest trading partner and largest source
of investment, as well as a key regional and global
partner in achieving more open markets through
the WTO and APEC. People-to-people ties,
including educational and cultural links, are
extensive and wide-ranging, with over 600,000
business visitors and tourists travelling between
Australia and the United States each year.
Japan
Japan occupies a vital strategic position in
North-East Asia and continues to play a primary
economic and political role in our immediate
region. Australia works hard to encourage close
dialogue with Japan on a wide range of economic,
political and strategic issues and the
development, to the extent possible, of policies
which are mutually reinforcing. Japan continues
to be Australia’s major trading partner,
accounting for some 16% by value of our total
trade (exports plus imports) in 1999. It is a
significant investor in Australia and our largest
source of in-bound tourism.
Australia’s partnership with Japan reflects the
broad alignment of Australian and Japanese
strategic, political and economic interests in the
Asia-Pacific region. Agreement to hold annual
Prime Ministerial Summits was reached in April
1997, and a Partnership Agenda was endorsed at
the 14th Australia Japan Ministerial Committee
meeting in August 1997. Like Australia, Japan
supports the long-term strategic engagement of
the United States in the Asia-Pacific region and
recognises the fundamental contribution that it
makes to regional stability. Japan also shares our
interest in advancing the APEC forum as the
primary vehicle for economic cooperation in the
Asia Pacific region.
China
China’s importance to Australia grows along with
China’s increasing economic, political and
strategic engagement with the Asia-Pacific region
and the global economy. China’s relations with
the countries of the Asia-Pacific region are
critically important to the maintenance of
regional peace and security. In particular, China’s
relations with Japan and the United States play a
vital role in shaping the security context for the
entire region. It is in Australia’s national interest
to actively encourage and support Chinese
participation in dialogue and cooperation on
regional security issues. The visit to Australia by
Chinese President Jiang Zemin in September
1999 represented an important milestone in
Australia’s relations with China.
The trade and investment relationship between
Australia and China is expanding. China is
Australia’s fourth-largest merchandise trade
partner. China’s entry into the WTO will open up
new opportunities for Australia both in terms of