The British Military Withdrawal from Southeast Asia and its Impact on Australia's Cold War Strategic Interests

The impact of Britain's withdrawal on Western strategic interests in Cold War Asia constitutes the focus of this article. In particular, the article provides an analysis of the problems and the challenges which confronted Australia in its response to the Wilson government's controversial decision to pull out of Southeast Asia. While the US reaction to Britain's disengagement has been examined in some detail, Australian and New Zealand responses to changes in British policy in Cold War Asia have been largely overlooked. This article therefore aims to redress this situation by examining the consequences of withdrawal for Australia, a country strongly committed to the West's containment strategy in Cold War Asia