Foundations for Modern Approaches to the China Security Question

What are the ideational, strategic, and political foundations of current Australian policy towards China? Although the strategic and security implication of a rising China in the region is frequently seen as a modern issue, the challenge of how to deal with a 'China growing strong' has preoccupied Australia since the 1950s; while modern approaches date from the 1960s. This paper traces the evolution of Australian security policy, attitudes, strategies, and assumptions behind both Liberal and Labor responses to the 'China security question' as well as the politics driving theme from Prime Minister Robert Menzies through to current Prime Minister John Howard. How have attitudes and responses to the 'China security question' evolved and changed, why did they do so, and how is this relevant to understanding current and future Australian responses to meeting the challenge of China's continued rise today? This paper explores these questions in chronological order, which coincides with the thematic development of the 'China security question' beginning with the Liberal Governments up to 1972, then to the Whitlam Government and the period leading to the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, and finally from the post-Tiananmen period to the present one culminating in Prime Minister John Howard's attempt at 'synthesis' of both Liberal and Labor approaches to the question