School of Social and Political Sciences - Theses

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From conflict to cooperation: the transformation of Australian foreign policy towards the European Union

Yencken, Edward William ( 2017)

Given the emphasis placed on the US alliance and engagement with the Asia-Pacific region, Australian foreign policy can appear restricted in its focus. Australia’s approach to relations with the European Union (EU) reflects this situation, as they attracted limited attention and were centred on a number of bilateral disputes up until the early 1990s. This thesis, which examines the period up until the announcement of the opening of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations in 2017, argues, however, that Australia over the past two decades has forged an increasingly close relationship with the EU. This development has involved an emphasis on substantive cooperation in areas such as foreign and security policy, aid delivery, economic and trade matters, and climate change. Two case studies, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the Eurozone crisis, are used to demonstrate the transformation of Australian perceptions of the EU. This has seen the EU transitions from an actor behaving in a manner contrary to Australian interests to now being a politico-economic ally. These case studies also demonstrate how Australia’s past emphasis on bilateral disputes has been largely overcome with the signing of substantive bilateral agreements predicated on shared interests.