This chapter is concerned with how the foreign policy process developed during the period 2016–20 and how it interacted with and was shaped by the return of great-power politics. In particular, the chapter examines the foreign policy process through the lens of three main developments: the significant change in Australia’s approach to the People’s Republic of China in the context of growing Sino-American rivalry, the dominance of security in Australian foreign policy, and the adoption of the Indo-Pacific strategic construct. The chapter examines each of these in turn. Its conclusion reflects on what each of these developments tells us about the foreign policy process and in particular the role of key institutions, actors such as think tanks, parliament and the media, as well as individuals have played during this period.

The long and intensifying global expansion of the CCP has made the democratic countries increasingly uncomfortable and concerned. Virtually all the democracies realize that this current relationship with China cannot be sustained. Furthermore, they feel that their open societies are especially vulnerable to the CCP’s expansion, which is exacerbated by a lack of reciprocity: while the CCP/China can freely promote its views and enjoy full legal protection in their countries, they are restricted in China. Their citizens can be imprisoned and their firms can be shut down in China without due process. A China going global under dictatorship is more dangerous to the democracies than a closed one. If a dictatorship is closed, it will degenerate into infighting. For political, economic, and social reasons, China depends on its interactions with the democracies more than vice versa. The success of China, Inc. relies on the democracies to allow it to selectively use international rules in its favor and disregard them if needed. This is beginning to change.