2024 ANU CHINA IN THE WORLD FORUM
Australia's Roles and Responses to US-China Competition

Australia-China relations appear to be stabilised since the Albanese government was elected in 2022. While economic relations are warming, security tension remains. A growing presence of China in the Indo-Pacific has presented new and complex challenges for Australia. To what extent can the Albanese government engage in national interests by fostering economic cooperation with China while countering its security threats? How does Australia position itself in deteriorating US-China relations? The panel will delve into the multifaceted strategic, security, and economic interests that shape the dynamics between Australia, the United States and China. It will also explore the pivotal role of Australia as a ‘middle power’ in the region.

Speakers

Susan Dietz-Henderson, Senior Executive Adviser China, National Security College, Australian National University
Susan Dietz-Henderson is Senior Executive Adviser China at the Australian National University National Security College. She has extensive experience on China matters acquired through a combination of government diplomatic service and in the private sector in China. During her 20-year diplomatic career with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Susan served on a number of diplomatic postings in China (including as Australia’s Consul-General in Shanghai), the United States, Australia, and Papua New Guinea. She then spent 15 years based in China as Director, China Affairs for US fund management company, the Capital Group, where she established and managed Capital Group‘s China presence until early 2023. Ms Dietz-Henderson returned to DFAT as First Assistant Secretary of the East Asia Division, in 2023 before commencing in her current role.

Jennifer Jackett, Sir Roland Wilson Scholar, National Security College, Australian National University
Jennifer Jackett is a Sir Roland Wilson Scholar at the National Security College at the Australian National University. Her doctoral research examines the role of United States allies in US-China competition for leadership of advanced technologies. Jennifer is also a Non-Resident Fellow at the United States Studies Centre at Sydney University. She is an experienced senior policy adviser who has worked in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Department of Defence and Cabinet Secretary’s Office.

Alexander Korolev, Senior Lecturer, School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales
Alexander Korolev is a Senior Lecturer in International relations at the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He holds an MA in International Relations from Nankai University’s Zhou Enlai School of Government and a PhD in Political Science from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. His research interests include great power politics and small and middle powers in the context of intensifying great power rivalry. His latest book, China-Russia Strategic Alignment in International Politics explores China-Russia strategic cooperation in international polit

Brendan Taylor, Professor and Head, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University
Brendan Taylor is Professor of Strategic Studies and Head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre (SDSC), Australian National University. He is a specialist on great power strategic relations in the Asia-Pacific, East Asian ‘flashpoints’, and Asian security architecture. His writings on these subjects have appeared in such journals as Survival, The Washington Quarterly, Australian Foreign Affairs, The Pacific Review, International Affairs and Foreign Policy. He is the author or editor of 14 books, including The Four Flashpoints: How Asia Goes to War (Black Inc, 2018) and Dangerous Decade: Taiwan’s Security and Crisis Management (IISS, 2019).

Chair

Ben Hillman, Director, Australian Centre on China in the World, Australian National University
Ben Hillman is a political scientist, public policy researcher, and advisor, and is the Director of the Australian Centre on China in the World. His research examines (i) policies and mechanisms for promoting political inclusion and safeguarding minority rights, and (ii) politics, public policy and public administration in China. Ben is the author or editor of eight books on China, including Patronage and Power (Stanford University Press, 2014), Conflict and Protest in Tibet and Xinjiang (Columbia University Press, 2016), and Political and Social Control in China (ANU Press, 2024). Ben is Editor of The China Journal — the world’s number one-ranked journal in China Studies. From 2018-2021 he served as Director of the Policy and Governance Program at the Crawford School of Public Policy.

Light refreshments provided

If you require accessibility accommodations or a visitor Personal Emergency Evacuation plan please contact ciw@anu.edu.au.

Photo credit: Jimmy Harris.