Highly regarded geopolitical thinker and former Singaporean diplomat Kishore Mahbubani speaks in-depth about his essay, 'Australia's Choice: Can It Be A Bridge To Asia?', published in Australian Foreign Affairs Magazine (July 2022). Kishore explains how Australia needs to face up to the geopolitical reality of the 21st century – that China will become the number one global power. In order to find effective ways to both get along with and stand up to China, Kishore says there are many lessons Australia can learn from the ASEAN countries in South East Asia, especially Vietnam.

He also explains the diplomatic mistakes of the previous Morrison government in the Asian region and what the Albanese government can do to re-shape relations through ASEAN, APEC, The Quad, and the RCEP. He also addresses the issue of AUKUS and what the Albanese government could have done to reverse course. Kishore shares the historical basis for the current diplomatic tensions between China, the U.S. and Taiwan, and how likely a war in the Taiwan Straits is. He also touches on related arguments in his books, Has China Won?: The Chinese Challenge to American Primacy and The Asian 21st Century (free to download via Springer - Open Access). Kishore Mahbubani is a Distinguished Fellow at the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore, and served as Singapore’s Ambassador to the UN and as President of the United Nations Security Council.

Photo Credit: Ore Huiying (胡惠颖)