Sydney, Wednesday 31 January 2024: In the early years of China’s rise, Australia seemed to manage its strategic position between China and the US in Asia with aplomb. But is it still capable of the delicate diplomatic dance it used to perform so deftly? Or has an increasingly assertive China created national and geopolitical challenges too great for Australia to continue to balance its relationship with these two global giants?    

For our first Ramsay Lecture for 2024, the Ramsay Centre is delighted to present an in-person event, an expert panel discussion titled ‘Navigating the Crossroads: Australia’s Strategic Position Between China and the US in Asia.’

Our panel will consist of four accomplished foreign policy experts; United States Studies Centre CEO Dr Mike Green, Macquarie University Security Studies Senior Lecturer Dr Lavina Lee, author and consultant Dr Milton Osborne AM and Lowy Institute International Security Program Director Sam Roggeveen.

These four esteemed panellists will dissect evolving dynamics, assess potential scenarios, and offer insights into how Australia can navigate this intricate balance in Asia, to secure its interests and contribute to regional stability.

The discussion will be guided by Ramsay Centre Academic Manager Jack Sexton.

Don’t miss this opportunity to gain a comprehensive understanding of Australia’s geopolitical chessboard and the implications for its strategic future.

Join us on Tuesday, 13 February 2024 in the Gallery Room at the State Library of New South Wales, 5:30-7:30pm. To attend RSVP directly to: ramsayevents@ramsaycentre.org by Tuesday, 07 February 2024.

Speaker biographies:

Dr Mike Green:

Dr Michael Green is CEO of the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney. Previously he was Senior Vice President for Asia, Japan Chair, and Henry A. Kissinger Chair, at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington D.C. He has also served as Director of Asian Studies, and Chair in Modern and Contemporary Japanese Politics and Foreign Policy, at Georgetown University. He worked on staff at the National Security Council (NSC) from 2001 through 2005, first as Director for Asian Affairs, then special assistant to the President for national security affairs and Senior Director for Asia. Before joining the NSC, he worked at several organisations including the Council on Foreign Relations, the Edwin O. Reischauer Centre, the Foreign Policy Institute, Johns Hopkins University, the Institute for Defence Analyses, the Office of the Secretary of Defence, and the National Diet in Japan.

Dr Lavina Lee:

Dr Lavina Lee is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University. Dr Lee was appointed to the Council of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute by the Australian Defence Minister from 2020-2023 and was previously a Director of the Institute for Regional Security. She is a non-resident fellow of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C. as well as non-resident Senior Fellow at the United States Studies Centre. Dr. Lee is author of US Hegemony and International Legitimacy: Norms Power and Followership in the Wars on Iraq and has published research and commentary on maritime security and strategy in the Indo-Pacific, the Quad, Indian foreign and security policy, and the US-Australia alliance.She has been published in The Australian, AFR, The Hindustan Times, and New Straits Times, and specialist policy outlets.

Dr Milton Osborne AM:

Dr Milton Osborne AM was a non-resident fellow at the Lowy Institute for ten years. He was posted to the Australian Embassy in Phnom Penh in 1959 and has held academic positions in Australia, the UK, the US, and Singapore.In 1980-81 he was a consultant to the UN High Commissioner on Refugees working along the Thai-Cambodian border. In 1982 he served as Head of the Asia Branch of the Office of National Assessments, also serving for a year as Head of Current Intelligence. Since 1993 he has been an independent writer and consultant and Adjunct Professor at the Australian National University.He is author of 11 books including: Southeast Asia: An Introductory History, now in its 14th edition; River Road to China: The Search for the Source of the Mekong (A New York Times ‘notable book’); Turbulent Past, Uncertain Future; and Pol Pot solved the Leprosy Problem.

Sam Roggeveen:

Sam Roggeveen is Director of the Lowy Institute’s International Security Program and author of The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and Peace (2023). Previously Sam was a senior strategic analyst in the Office of National Assessments, where his focus was North Asian strategic affairs, including nuclear strategy and Asian military forces. Sam also worked on arms control policy in Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs, and as an analyst in the Defence Intelligence Organisation. Sam has an interest in politics and political philosophy, and in 2019 wrote Our Very Own Brexit: Australia’s Hollow Politics and Where it Could Lead Us. Sam writes for newspapers and magazines in Australia and globally and for Lowy’s digital magazine, The Interpreter, of which he was the founding editor. Sam also serves as lead editor at the Lowy Institute, and editor of the Lowy Institute Papers.

Media contact: Sarah Switzer 0407 816 098 / sarah.switzer@ramsaycentre.org