The maritime basis of Australian security
Japan's pressing problem is to convince its people that security problems cannot be ignored in the hope that they will go away, or that others can be expected to solve them. Australia's first task is to shed outdated and muddled strategic thinking based on chimerical notions of 'self-reliance'. For both countries, strategic thinking must begin with the maritime basis of their security.
Australia is an island which needs maritime protection because it lacks the industrial capacity and population to be truly self-reliant. 8 Alliance with the United States, the dominant global maritime power, represents optimal security for Australia, as it does for Japan.
Australia's dependence on sea-borne trade, as well as its history, underline its need for maritime protection. The colony of New South Wales was founded by the Royal Navy when Brittania ruled the waves; its first four governors were naval officers. Australia's need for maritime security was driven home by the fall of Singapore in February 1942. With the vital straits off Singapore closed, Australia was cut off from Britain, and open to invasion. The battle for Guadacanal, fought by US marines, was critical because the Solomon archipelago lies athwart the sea lanes from America to Australia's east coast. The battles of the Coral Sea and Midway also marked turning points in the defense of Australia, and hence its ability to function as a base for the U.S. forces which later brought Japan to its knees by the exercise of maritime power. 9
Isolationist thinking in the 1970s overlooked three basic lessons of history. The first is that danger does not recede with distance. The second is that Australia could be brought to heel without need for invasion. The third is that Australia's security has always be defined by the global balance. In 1942, it was the breakdown of the global balance that led to Japan's seizing the opportunity to strike southwards. The balance of power had broken down far from Australia's shores, but its consequences included attacks on Australian territory. 10
The value of alliances in shaping global and regional balances
The basis of Australian security has not changed greatly since the Second World War because the Pacific has remained a maritime theatre. During the Cold War, superpower competition in East Asia was mostly maritime. In Europe it was largely continental, although dependent on maritime reinforcement. (The difference between the two theaters was a function of strategic geography that largely replicated the Second World War.) 11
Although Australia is remote from the sources of global tension, it did not pursue a head-in-the-sand approach to security during the Cold War. Instead, Australia added its weight to the compatible side, and by doing so contributed to victory. By helping take the fight to the enemy, Australia reduced the risk of War on its own territory.
