Australian foreign policy

Domestic interests and global cooperation

In considering Australia’s foreign policy, there can sometimes be a clash between economic interests and democratic values. Asked about priorities for Australia in this situation, six in ten Australians (60%) say that Australia’s democratic values are more important, whereas more than one third (38%) say that economic interests are more important. In a similar question asked more than a decade ago in 2007, three-quarters of the country (74%) said that ‘democratic or humanitarian values’ were more important, compared to 18% selecting ‘economic or political interests’. This indicates an increased emphasis on economic interests in the past decade. There can also be clashes between the domestic interests of individual countries and the global interest in solving global problems, when countries debate a global agreement in an international or multilateral institution such as the United Nations. In 2020, two-thirds of Australians (66%) say the government ‘should prioritise Australia’s domestic interests over reaching a global agreement’. A third (31%) say that reaching global agreement should be prioritised over Australia’s domestic interests.

However, this sentiment, recorded during fieldwork in March, may have shifted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Responding to COVIDpoll in April, 53% say ‘we need more global cooperation and less focus on the interests of individual countries during global crises’ while only 16% believe ‘every country should put their own interests first’; 31% say the balance is ‘about right’. Australians have tended to avoid recent trends of protectionist sentiment: in COVIDpoll, seven in ten (70%) of Australians say that globalisation is mostly good for Australia, unchanged from their response in 2019.

Australian foreign policy
Domestic interests and global cooperation

Question

When trying to address global problems, there can sometimes be a clash between Australia’s domestic interests and a global agreement being debated within an international institution. If that happens, what do you think the Australian government should do?

This question was asked in 2020.

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