Julie Bishop

on the future of ‘the Quad’ (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue)

Chancellor of Australia National University; former Foreign Minister of Australia, and Member of the Australian Parliament Fisher Family Fellow, 2020-2021

The greatest challenge for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue will be to build external and internal support for the rules-based international order. Territorial and other disputes in the Indo-Pacific must be resolved peacefully within that order to ensure ongoing regional stability and economic growth. That means an explicit commitment to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other international conventions and norms. The Indo-Pacific lacks the security architecture of Europe, for example through NATO, and would thus benefit from the Quad engaging in building broader support for collective security. The maintenance of regional peace and security has benefits to all nations and requires proportional commitment to that end. The Quad also needs to strengthen its internal structures so that member states are clear about the obligations to the rules-based international order that come with membership. Transparency about the principles that underpin that Quad will help build broader support for the grouping and potentially increase its membership.

What advice do you have for the next generation of diplomatic practitioners?

It is vital that policy development is evidence-based and that ideas are robustly contested. Armed with evidence, I advise that you consider all alternative approaches and build support for your arguments through intellectual rigor.