Why Australia is on its own in its trade conflict with China
As China piles on the trade pressure, the reality of Australia's economic place in the world has been laid bare: it is on its own. In a 2017 book, Allan Gyngell, a former director general of the Australian Office of National Assessments, wrote that a “fear of abandonment†drives how Australia acts in the world. This probably explains some of the ideas now being heard. One is to seek protection by taking Australia's security treaty with the United States and moving it “beyond the military…