Why Australia hasn't given up on a rules-based world order
Putting 'negative globalism' talk aside, strategic shocks are forcing Canberra to think about an international system that can protect sovereignty and prevent great power conflict.
Has Australia given up hope for an international order based on rules?
Facing a stormier world, Canberra has clung ever-tighter to the concept of the "rules-based international order". That phrase first appeared in a Defence White Paper in 2009 and was repeated 56 times in the 2016 version. But in this month's Defence Strategic Update it was overtaken by references to the "grey zone".
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Ben Scott is Director of the Australia’s Security and the Rules-Based Order Project at the Lowy Institute.
