Twice yesterday I heard people talk about Australia, in glowing terms, as one of our post Brexit strategic partners. First we apparently need to return to the same relationship we had with our Commonwealth partner before we joined the Common Market. Then we need to improve our defence ties with Australia.
However Australia has had since the 1960’s to get hold of the idea that we were more interested in Europe than it and has adjusted accordingly. Expecting it to run back into our arms after 50 years is a big ask. Even economically we are their 7th or 8th largest trading partner, rather low for a former colonial power. Australia is the UK’s 19th largest market.
Then as my former Professor of International Relations once told me; after the fall of Singapore in 1942 Australia changed its foreign policy. It counted how many aircraft carriers the UK had in the Pacific and how many the USA had and adjusted its world view accordingly. I know we now have two carriers but stationing even one in the Far East would be massively expensive, we don’t have the logistical support to do that and the USA still has 11 bigger ones.
We will doubtless get a FTA with Australia and remain on very friendly terms but as my old Prof. would also have said, states have permanent interests not permanent friends.
https://jonty.substack.com/
Brexiteer world-blindness to assume UK (or is that GB?) is still a major world power outside the EU