139. A conversation with Sam Roggeveen on defence, diplomacy and Australia's role in a multipolar world

How can smart defence strategies and multilateral diplomacy avoid a US-China war in Asia - for example over Taiwan? Have American and Australian advocates of war with China over Taiwan really thought about the realities of a war with China? How should middle powers - like Australia, Indonesia and the ASEAN nations - adapt their defence and foreign policies to the new realities of war, Asian strengths and US power today? My conversation with Sam Roggeveen about his book The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and Peace asked these fundamental questions that concern everyone around the world. What would a war with China really be like, and how can defence - the echidna strategy - and some creative diplomacy avoid a US-China war in Asia. Our conversation covered Australian defence and foreign policy, AUKUS and nuclear submarines, the upcoming Australia-ASEAN meeting in Melbourne (March 2024), China, Indonesia, regional order in Asia and the West Pacific, lessons of the Ukraine war, & the USA. Is the USA becoming just a normal great power, and what does that mean for other countries all around the world? A big thank you to Sam Roggeveen, who is the Director, International Security at the Lowy Institute Links to Sam's book, The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and Peace (2023) ▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH QUALITY WORLD HISTORY Join my free weekly newsletter to receive insights from world history and reflections on the intersection of culture, history and geopolitics. ✉️ Signup is free: https://jeffrich.substack.com ✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: ▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES World History Explorers and all my courses https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/