July 2023

USSC goes global

This month was another global affair for the United States Studies Centre (USSC). Excitingly, after a three-year hiatus due to COVID-19, USSC’s popular study abroad program returned with a cohort of 15 students travelling to UCLA to complete a Summer Sessions program. They studied everything from political science to urban planning and design. Jane Duke, the Australian Consul-General in Los Angeles, even hosted them for a reception in her house.

USSC CEO Dr Michael Green returned to Washington DC for high-level meetings before travelling to the Aspen Security Dialogue and finishing the month in New Delhi to speak at the India-Japan Forum.

Completing the circle around the globe, Senior Lecturer in US Politics and Foreign Policy Dr Gorana Grgic completed a sabbatical in Europe, where she attended the NATO Vilnius Summit. This followed her prior work with the NATO Defence College.

USSC’s widening international network is indicative of the increasing interconnectedness of all international affairs. What happens in Ukraine is relevant to the Indo-Pacific. The Vilnius Summit showed NATO is more readily engaging with partners around the globe. And AUKUS member states are actively exploring other partner countries, whether officially part of the security agreement or not. The work of the USSC to find solutions for the Australia-US alliance is an expansive and ambitious agenda, but the team at USSC is up for the task.

NEWS

Newest debate paper: Is American democracy in peril?

According to USSC polling, 64 per cent of Americans and 46 per cent of Australians are concerned about the way democracy is working in the United States. To tease out the arguments for why or why not US democracy is a matter for concern USSC commissioned its latest debate paper: Is American democracy in peril?

Arguing in the affirmative, University College London Associate Professor in Global Politics Dr Brian Klaas says American democracy has a chronic illness with little treatment. This illness has made the Republican Party “more authoritarian and more extreme”. Without action, “American democracy will be in peril at every national election.”

Staff Writer at the New York Times and former USSC Visiting Fellow Jane Coaston says American democracy is not in peril (ish). She notes that the structures have not changed and that would be the most significant indicator that democracy is broken. However, she qualifies that, “I am worried about Americans. They are often underpaid, overworked and exhausted, and they are also the foundations of what democratic functioning really looks like.”

Read the latest debate paper here.

Minister for Defence Industry joins roundtable discussion

This month, Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy was the featured guest at our Defence Industry Roundtable. The roundtable discussion centred on the Albanese government’s forthcoming Defence Industrial Development Strategy and the implications of the Defence Strategic Review for Australian defence industry policy and was hosted by USSC Director of Foreign Policy and Defence Prof. Peter Dean.

USSC at NATO Summit

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wasn’t the only Australian at the NATO Summit. USSC Senior Lecturer in US Politics and Foreign Policy Dr Gorana Grgic was invited to attend the summit in Vilnius. She was a research fellow with NATO’s National Defence College in 2021 through their Partners Across the Globe Forum. Strengthening ties with Australia and other countries outside the North Atlantic region is part of a strategic effort on NATO’s part. As Gorana explains, “Initially, NATO's cooperation with Australia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and New Zealand involved resource pooling to provide security for non-NATO members, as seen in the Balkans and Afghanistan. However, strengthening these partnerships is now considered crucial for enhancing defence capabilities both within the alliance and among its partner nations.”

USSC welcomes former US Energy Secretary Steven Chu

USSC was delighted to partner with the University of Sydney’s Sydney Environment Institute to host Nobel Laureate and former US Energy Secretary Steven Chu for a roundtable discussion with experts in the field. The discussion focused on US-Australia bilateral climate relations and looked at the sort of policies, technologies and partnerships that could provide a path to a sustainable and prosperous future.

Sydney students thriving at UCLA

Fifteen students from the University of Sydney participated in USSC’s first study abroad program since 2019. Students are completing a robust UCLA Summer Sessions program, completing two courses each. In addition they are enjoying tour days in LA, and a true highlight was their reception at the Australian Consul-General’s residence. Students represented a broad cross-section of the university and are studying everything from commerce to advanced computing.

The academic team is exploring new study abroad opportunities to introduce from 2024 onwards. Make sure to visit our study abroad page for updates.

UPSCALE roundtable tests national security investment solutions

The Economic Security Program is nearing completion of its UPSCALE Initiative, looking at how to leverage private sector investment to support national security innovation. This month, they gathered with key stakeholders from government and industry to test their recommendations and pathways forward ahead of the release of their outcomes report.

Over a series of roundtables and workshops with representatives from both Australian and US government and defence sectors, significant progress has been made toward not just identifying the primary obstacles facing investment in defence innovation, but finding the most achievable solutions.

Now hiring: Foreign Policy and Defence Research Fellow

USSC perspectives

Australia's alliances and partnerships regionally and across the globe were a major focus of USSC experts this month. US politics is also picking up momentum as the 2024 election nears and more legal challenges emerge for Republican frontrunner former president Donald Trump.

• Australia’s role supporting democracies as a middle power by Dr Michael Green and Victoria Cooper, first published in Asia Democracy Research Network.
• Why is NATO expanding its reach to the Asia-Pacific region? by Gorana Grgic, first published in The Conversation.
• Elon Musk's Twitter is becoming a sewer of disinformation by Dr Miah Hammond-Errey, first published in Foreign Policy.
• America doesn’t want Biden or Trump, but one of them will win in 2024 by Bruce Wolpe, first published in The Age.
• America is still Australia’s best bet by Dr Michael Green, first published in The Australian.

EVENTS

Sydney International Strategy Forum: The United States, Australia and a contested Indo-Pacific

Support for alliances is strong in Washington, as the ambitious AUKUS pact charts new territory in critical technologies and sovereign capabilities and diverse Indo-Pacific networks of bilateral, trilateral, and quadrilateral cooperation shape the regional balance of power. At the same time, US allies and partners are expressing concerns about the Biden administration’s industrial policy agenda and US-China trade and technology wars, underscoring the complexities of “friend shoring” and “de-risking” critical supply chains. On the US domestic front, a looming 2024 presidential race and the prospect of another Trump presidency also raises questions about the future of sustained US engagement in the world. 

The United States Studies Centre invites you to the launch of its flagship conference, the Sydney International Strategy Forum, where these issues, and the enormous risks and opportunities associated with each, will be tackled by prominent experts and thought leaders. Confirmed speakers include Michele Flournoy, Admiral Phil Davidson, Dr Evan Medeiros, Ryan Lizza and Olivia Nuzzi.

TYPE
Conference

WHERE
Four Seasons Hotel Sydney, 199 George Street, The Rocks NSW

WHEN
SYDNEY | Wednesday, 1 November 2023, 8.30am-4.30pm AEDT

COST
Early bird: A$499 (ends 31 July 2023)
Student: A$180
Full price: A$560
Book your tickets here

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Videos and podcasts

The latest recordings from our webinars are available on our YouTube channel and USSC Live podcast. Find all of the Centre’s podcast recordings here.

• PODCAST | USSC Briefing Room | What a second Trump term would mean for the United States and Australia with Bruce Wolpe, Victoria Cooper and Mari Koeck. LISTEN HERE
• PODCAST | The Asia Chessboard | ASEAN's future under great power rivalry with Choi Shing Kwok, Dr Michael Green and Jude Blanchette. LISTEN HERE
• PODCAST | USSC Briefing Room | The Indo-Pacific impacts of China’s fluctuating economy with economist Dan Rosen and Jared Mondschein. LISTEN HERE
• PODCAST | Technology and Security (TS) podcast | Synthetic biotech, DARPA for intelligence and AI regulation with RAND CEO Jason Matheny and Dr Miah Hammond-Errey. LISTEN HERE
• PODCAST | USSC Briefing Room | The end of affirmative action and a readout of the major US Supreme Court decisions with Dr Harry Melkonian and Mari Koeck. LISTEN HERE

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University of Sydney NSW 2006

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