2022 Year in Review

B O O K R E V I E W
T I D E S T H A T B I N D : A U S T R A L I A I N T H E
P A C I F I C
Declan Hourd
Tides that Bind: Australia in the Pacific is a short but
passionate declaration that advocates for Canberra to
improve its relations with the Pacific Island Countries (PICs)
and embrace its role as a regional leader. Published in
2021, the book is rooted in the profound personal
experience that Richard Marles has had in the Pacific
region both personally and in his professional capacity as
the Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs during
the Gillard Government. Now he is the Deputy Prime
Minister and Minister for Defence. Sitting in these influential portfolios, Marles is
provided the opportunity to influence Australian foreign policy and advocate his
ideas laid out in this book.
A core theme of the book lies in re-establishing Australia as a prominent fixture
of the Pacific. In recounting interactions with international counterparts, he
highlights that the world views Australia as an expert of Pacific affairs. Yet within
our domestic discourse, we don’t seem to recognise this.
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Marles muses on why this dissonance has occurred. He starts at the grass roots
and observes a decline in people to people relationships beginning in the 1970s
as waves of decolonisation and independence saw PICs regain control of their
countries. In retrospect this was an opportunity to facilitate growth and
strengthen our neighbouring democracies. However, as Australians who lived
across the South Pacific returned home, the interest of Canberra policymakers'
in the Pacific waned. This has only recently started to shift with junior diplomatic
staff revitalising interest in the region - viewing it as a launchpad to a more
prestigious posting in Asia, Europe, or the US. There must also be a shift in who
manages Australian relations with the region to avoid a depletion of systemic
knowledge of the region and its people. Currently Australian relations are
managed by first assistant secretaries - rather than the decision makers and
their advisors.