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題 名 | 澳洲與東南亞國家關係之研究=From "Security from Asia" to "Security with Asia": Australia-Southeast Asia Relations |
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作 者 | 王俊傑; | 書刊名 | 澳洲研究 |
卷 期 | 1 2000[民89.] |
頁 次 | 頁89-119 |
分類號 | 578.7138 |
關鍵詞 | 外交; 澳洲; 東南亞; |
語 文 | 中文(Chinese) |
英文摘要 | Australia is increasingly being drawn into regional affairs by virtue of its economic links and defence ties. The ‘tyranny of distance’ is diminishing thanks to modern communications and information technology. Politically, Australia has good bilateral relations with a number of states, such as Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore. But it faces limitations and obstacles that prevent its full political integration in the region. The most important of these stem from its liberal democratic political culture and strong multifaceted ties to the United States, and to a lesser extent, Europe. The debate over racism in Australia provoked by Pauline Hanson is a microcosm of the larger debate over whether Australia should seek security ‘from Asia’ or ‘with Asia.’ It may be argued that Australia’s relations with Southeast Asia have passed through four phases. The first phase covers the post-war years of the Labor Government from 1945-49. During this period the experiences of the Second World War imprinted the strategic importance of Southeast Asia on the minds of Australian defence planners. Australia, as a middle power with limited human resources, sought to protect itself ‘from Asia’ through collective security arrangements involving the United Kingdom and the United States. The second phase of Australia’s regional policy can be dated from the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 and the onset of the Cold War in Asia. Australia thereafter pursued the strategic objective of containing Communist power, joining the United Kingdom in the defence of Malaya/Malaysia, first during the Emergency and subsequently during confrontation with Indonesia. It also joined the United States in its military commitment to the Republic of Vietnam. Both overseas commitments came under the rubric of Forward Defence and reinforced the notion that Australia must seek security ‘from Asia.’ The third phase may be dated from the 1969 Nixon Doctrine and subsequent disengagement of US military power from mainland Southeast Asia. During this period Australia’s collective security arrangements were devalued as past doctrines of containment and Forward Defence were discarded. While Australia continued to support Malaysia and Singapore through the FPDA, the new multi-polar balance in fact diminished Australia’s military presence in the region. Communist victories in Indochina in 1975 and the subsequent outbreak of the Third Indochina War in 1978-79 led to a new regional polarisation. ASEAN emerged as a strong cohesive regional force as the credibility of US security guarantees diminished. This third phase may be seen as a transitional period in which Australia gradually moved to ‘security with Asia’ rather than ‘from Asia.’ The fourth phase of Australia relations with the region can be dated from the mid- to late-1980s. During this period the Cold War came to an end and Australia adopted a policy of defence self-reliance and sought security ‘with Asia.’ This took the form of Australian support for the peace process in Cambodia, participation in the ASEAN Regional Forum and APEC, and the growing web of defence links with regional states. Clearly, Gareth Evans’ Ministerial Statement of December 1989, which spelled out the rationale for comprehensive engagement in Southeast Asia, marked an important milestone in the process. Credit must also be given to the leadership of Prime Minister Paul Keating and his vision of an enhanced role for Australia in Asian affairs. Australia is well-integrated with the region in defence terms, but the above discussion has illustrated how frail are the economic ties to Southeast Asia (as opposed to Northeast Asia). While Australian membership in ASEAN has been mentioned from time to time, especially by Singaporean leaders, it remains a distant prospect. In the meantime, any linkage between ASEAN and its Free Trade Area and Australia and New Zealand, which share a Closer Economic Relations, has yet to be negotiated. Continued economic integration of the Asia Pacific economies will depend mainly on decisions taken at the APEC summit meetings and by the World Trade Organisation. Prior to the 1997-98 Asian financial and economic crisis, Australia’s Defence Minister, Ian MacLachlan, warned that Southeast Asia’s rapid economic growth was permitting certain regional states to embark on a force modernisation program which would rapidly erode Australia’s pre-eminence in this area. It is now argued that the Asian financial crisis will merely postpone and not halt indefinitely the force modernisation efforts now under way in Southeast Asia. Australia has responded to this challenge by a massive program of defence reform aimed at enhancing combat capability. Australia is also seriously considering enhancing its ability to absorb costly elements of new military technology embodied in the Revolution in Military Affairs. There is an obvious in-built tension in the DFAT (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) strategy to engage Asia economically with the realist view of the Defence Department. The debate over racism ignited by independent MP Pauline Hanson raises the question as to whether or not Australia’s political leaders have gone ‘too far, too fast’ for the electorate. Australia’s elections scheduled for 3rd October 1998 will offer an opportunity to test this proposition. If this is indeed the case, Australia’s engagement in Southeast Asia will be slowed considerably as Australia will be viewed as the ‘odd man out’ in cultural and political terms. The difficulty for the current government is how to push a policy of engagement towards the region and react to the anti-Asian policies of the One Nation Party. This conundrum was captured in an expression used by the Prime Minister in the course of the current political campaign, ‘Asia first’ he argued but ‘not Asia only’. |
本系統中英文摘要資訊取自各篇刊載內容。