November 2021

A time for thanks

Last week, Americans gathered with family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving. This is one US tradition I am truly grateful to have incorporated. A time to gather and reflect, to take stock and make connections. While 2021 certainly looked far different from how we expected, I am still filled with a profound sense of gratitude for many things.

At the United States Studies Centre (USSC), we have gone from strength to strength. Even a lengthy lockdown couldn't hold us back. It is with deep pride that we have produced a lavish book that is a true highlight for me from my time at the Centre. To have contributions not just from prime ministers and celebrities, but a former US president is a true significant moment for the Centre. The willingness of so many to participate speaks volumes about the level of deep-seated connection so many feel about the US-Australia alliance. As writer and director Rob Sitch said in his contribution, "We're very good at commemorating war but we probably need to be better at commemorating ideas that secure the peace. To the extent that the ANZUS Treaty was aimed at security rather than conflict, it's well worth choosing the 70th anniversary to study it anew." Read more of his contribution below or contact us at ussc.media@sydney.edu.au to find out how you can get a copy of the book.

Finally, amidst another busy season, our team have continued to put significant runs on the board. In particular, I want to commend the academic team for continuing to produce high-impact, peer-reviewed research and secure external grants and recognition. Dr Brendon O’Connor co-authored an article in the well-regarded journal and contributed a book chapter to the forthcoming Routledge Handbook of Diplomacy and Statecraft and co-authored an article in the well-regarded journal Presidential Studies Quarterly. Dr Aaron Nyerges published an article on the material culture of Hollywood appear in Textual Practice, a top-tier UK journal. My own writing, "Politically Invisible America" with Bradley T. Spahn was published in PS: Political Science & Politics and ‘‘Optimal Response Formats for Online Surveys: Branch, Grid, or Single Item?’’ with Matthew DeBell, Catherine Wilson and L. Figueroa was published in the Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology.

In addition to her writing appearing for the NATO Defense College Policy Brief and The Australasia Journal of American Studies, Dr Gorana Grgic has secured significant grants for further work, notably from the European Commission - in what I believe is a first for the University of Sydney, as well as the USSC.

We will close the year out with a bang as we launch our book, continue our rigorous publishing schedule and offer our final public-facing events of the year. But at the moment, it is worth looking back and reflecting on all there is to be thankful for. Most of all, we are thankful for your ongoing interest and support. Your continued engagement with the work of the Centre is what helps us deliver our mission: Analysis of America. Insight for Australia.

Sincerely,

Professor Simon Jackman
CEO, United States Studies Centre

EVENTS

WEBINAR | 3 DECEMBER

A seat at the table: The role of regional multilateral institutions in US Indo-Pacific strategy

For the past 30 years, Australia has supported inclusive regional security and economic multilateral institutions as a way of entrenching the United States’ role in Asia. With US-China competition intensifying, institutions such as the East Asia Summit (EAS) and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) are coming under new pressure. Yet even as new narrower groupings such as the Quad take form, the region's established multilateral institutions will remain key forums in the competition for regional influence.

How can the United States use ASEAN-led institutions to advance its Indo-Pacific strategy? How does its approach to Asian multilateral institutions compare with that of other countries, including China, Australia and Japan? How should the Biden administration prioritise its ASEAN engagement vis-a-vis the Quad and other narrower regional groupings? And what implications does this have for Australia?

To discuss these issues and launch our new report A seat at the table The role of regional multilateral institutions in US Indo-Pacific strategy, the United States Studies Centre (USSC) will host a webinar featuring report author Susannah Patton, Research Fellow in USSC's Foreign Policy and Defence Program; Hoang Thi Ha, Lead Researcher at the ASEAN Studies Centre and Co-coordinator of the Regional Strategic and Political Studies Programme at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute; and Dr Prashanth Parameswaran, Global Fellow at the Wilson Center in conversation with Dr Peter Lee, Research Fellow in USSC's Foreign Policy and Defence Program.

You can also subscribe to have event invitations and reminders sent straight to your inbox, so you never have to miss an event!

This activity was supported by the Australian Government through a grant by the Australian Department of Defence. The views expressed herein are those of the speakers and are not necessarily those of the Australian government or the Australian Department of Defence.

Register

THE ALLIANCE AT 70

Excerpt from the contribution by Rob Sitch, Director and co-writer of The Dish (2000), and The Castle (1997), Director, co-writer and star of Utopia (2014-present), The Hollowmen (2008) and Frontline (1994-97), for the soon-to-be-released USSC book:
The Alliance at 70

Many Aussies have a personal connection. During the Second World War, my father was briefly seconded to fly in US Catalinas. ‘Fine aviators,’ he would say. He shared airbases with US forces in the South Pacific: ‘They had a jeep to go to the toilet!’ There it was in a nutshell; respect for the skills and the scale of the US military machine but still proud of his own mob’s ability to do more with less.

That was the DNA of our film The Dish. It was based on a forgotten Australian involvement with the Apollo program.

By chance, Australia had some rather good radio telescopes. Our scientists and NASA had a lot to do with each other during those critical years. All the TV pictures from Apollo 11 came via Australian installations. This surprised many Americans and even more Australians who had never heard of this fact.

One only had to look at the photos from the period to be amused by the mismatch. Technical experts at Mission Control in crisp white shirts and ties while in outback Australia, an expert radio astronomer seemed to be dressed as a farm labourer. On the one hand, the greatest and most expensive act of experimental science and exploration in history and on the other side of the world a local guy ready to hand dig a trench in order to make a giant satellite dish exceed its specifications. It was easy to imagine admiration going both ways.

There’s a little-told story from that time. An orbiting American astronaut found himself over the west coast of Australia. He was fondly remembering an Aussie friend when he decided to send him a cheerio. The oﬃcer who received it at the isolated communication station in northwestern Australia converted it into a telegram. Then he had an issue. It needed a sender’s address. So he simply wrote, ‘from Space.’

There is the US-Australia connection in one exchange: comity, practicality and friendship.

There were other aspects to the ANZUS Treaty that surprised us. Given the number of times it has been proudly referenced in this country, you’d think its invocation would be as regular as the Olympics. Despite a number of our prime ministers being only too keen to announce troop deployments, there’s only one instance where the Treaty was invoked and that was led by us. This seems partly by design.

The great American war-time General, George Catlett Marshall, who was Secretary of Defense at the time, seems to have had a hand in cooling some of the original language. Having overseen the allied eﬀort in the Second World War, he wasn’t keen on agreements that encouraged a reflex call to arms. So the Treaty calls on signatories to ‘consult’ and ‘act’ without specifying what that means. It may well be the key to its longevity

The Alliance at 70: This lavishly produced, colourful volume explores the history of the Australia-US Alliance and wider relationship through archival research, images and personal recollections from several influential voices including former US President George W. Bush, former Prime Ministers John Howard and Julia Gillard, Ambassadors Arthur Sinodinos and John Berry and writers and actors Paul Hogan and Rob Sitch.

Register your interest

NEWS

Grant from European Commission in first for the University of Sydney

Dr Gorana Grgic, Senior Lecturer in US Politics and Foreign Policy, has been awarded ERASMUS + Jean Monnet grant funds from the European Union - a first for the University of Sydney and the USSC.

This project will develop and deliver an undergraduate level unit of study "Europe in World Affairs" available to all students enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts (Politics and International Relations) program at the Department of Government and International Relations, as well as to all Bachelor of Arts students as an elective unit of study at the University of Sydney. The unit will focus on the most pressing policy areas for the EU such as security, trade, climate change, and relations with major and emerging powers while United States comes into play in the focus on transatlantic cooperation. Along with the undergraduate unit, the project will deliver research publications and public outreach events on the subject of global EU in an Australian context.

Please join us in congratulating Dr Grgic on her latest success.

Now hiring | Research Fellow

Our Foreign Policy and Defence Team is recruiting an experienced Research Fellow to contribute to the work of the Foreign Policy and Defence Program. The successful candidate will play a key role in all aspects of the Program, undertaking original research, conducting policy outreach and delivering key think tank activities.

As a core member of our expanding Foreign Policy and Defence team, the Research Fellow will be immersed in the research work, policy engagement and major activities of one of Australia’s leading think tanks. They will have expertise in, and will work across, some of the following priority research areas:

Strategic, defence and foreign policy trends in the Indo-Pacific
Regional alliances, partnerships and alignment dynamics
Deterrence and counter-coercion in US and Australian policy
Defence strategy and budgets, industry and emerging technology
America’s regional position and US/Australian strategic policy

LEARN MORE HERE

Welcome and farewell

November has been a month of transitions at the Centre. The Foreign Policy and Defence Team has welcomed two new members: Research Fellow Peter Lee, who recently completed his PhD at ANU's Strategic and Defence Studies Centre and has worked at the Asan Institute and Program Associate Alice Nason who recently completed her Honours in Government and International Relations and American Studies.

In November, two members of our staff team moved on to new opportunities. Research Associate Toby Warden secured an exclusive research opportunity in Oxford and Outreach & Media Officer Taylor Mellor is joining the University of Sydney's Brand and Engagement Team as Social Media Senior Officer. While sad to see them go, we are excited to see our team progress in their careers.

Academic perspectives

In between teaching in-person, online and hybrid courses, our Academic Team continues to explore new ideas through research. Recent peer-reviewed publications include:

Ideology and the Foreign Policy of Barack Obama: A Liberal-Realist Approach to International Affairs by Dr Brendon O'Connor and Dr Danny Cooper
Policy priorities and personalities: Domestic divisions leave blanks in US Asia policy by Dr Gorana Grgic
Emblem of ruin: the fate of allegory in a time of weak theory by Dr Aaron Nyerges

In the news

As summit season hit full swing, there was a major focus on US-China-Australia relations - especially following the hours-long phone call between President Biden and President Xi.

As China threat rises, can AUKUS alliance recover from rancorous birth?
USSC research fellow Susannah Patton is quoted in this article published by The Guardian. READ MORE HERE

Mixed signals on China must not cloud realities
The Australian refers to commentary from USSC non-resident senior fellow in its editorial. READ MORE HERE

USSC IMHO

From calls to 'invade Australia' to competition with China and AUKUS, USSC experts published commentary on a wide range of topics this month, including:

In the case of conflict with China, check your Cold War analogies by Charles Edel. First published by The Washington Post.
Memo Mr Keating: We’re not crazy brave on China by John Lee. First published by The Australian.
Is Australia relevant? by Susannah Patton. First published by The Interpreter.
How the Democrats should govern now by Bruce Wolpe. First published by The New York Daily News.

View all USSC publications

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Webinar replays

The latest episodes of our webinars are now available on our YouTube channel. Catch up on these events through the USSC Live podcast and on YouTube. Here are some of the greatest hits from recent webinars:

The fate of President Biden's legislative agenda in Congress with Bruce Wolpe, Bryan Marshall and Sarah Storey
Biden's Indo-Pacific strategy: The state of play with Richard Maud, Ashley Townshend, Susannah Patton, Elina Noor and Emma Connors

Make sure to SUBSCRIBE to the USSC YouTube channel to get notifications as soon as new videos are uploaded.

Watch now

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University of Sydney NSW 2006

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