Outdated Western Attitudes Leave Australia Vulnerable to Pacific Strategic Surprises
Australia was caught off guard by the Solomon Islands' security pact with China, revealing a lingering Western mindset that treats Pacific neighbours as dependent.
When the Solomon Islands signed a security pact with China in April 2022, both Australia and the United States failed to stop it, exposing a deep-seated “Western mindset” that treats Pacific states as subordinate. Former shadow foreign minister Penny Wong labeled the deal the worst Australian foreign-policy blunder since World War II, while some commentators even advocated a pre-emptive invasion, a stance condemned by Solomon Islands prime minister Manasseh Sogavare as insulting.
The piece traces the mindset to historic colonial and Cold-War structures that persist in Western politics, reinforced by nostalgic right-wing slogans and a reluctance to accept a multipolar reality. It cites Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s call to abandon the illusion of a rules-based order and points to U.S. miscalculations in Iran as further evidence. Despite recent Australian defence reviews acknowledging China’s rise and the decline of U.S. primacy, Australia continues to pursue AUKUS, reflecting an inability to move beyond the outdated worldview, a risk the author says threatens national security.
Why it matters
Outdated paternalistic views may blind Australia to shifting geopolitics, jeopardizing its national security.
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