Independent posturing outside the US alliance would endanger Australia
The more important and integral we are to American regional interests, the more likely it is that our powerful ally will come to our aid, under any administration.
If the only tool you have is a hammer, then most things resemble a nail. This is the oft-quoted observation of the American psychologist Abraham Maslow regarding cognitive bias. Supposed bias is why some are sceptical of contemporary Australian strategic and defence policy.
The charge is that Australia is pursuing an overly militarised foreign policy based on alarmist assessments of the material threat China poses. This is leading to over-reliance on an American ally whose intentions and obligations owed to us are uncertain, and which comes at the expense of our ability to make independent sovereign decisions.
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Dr John Lee is a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute in Washington DC. From 2016-18, he was the senior adviser to the Australian foreign minister.
