2022 Year in Review

In Australia’s absence a variety of challenges have engulfed the region. Climate
change is the first that comes to mind. Rising sea levels shrink the shallow
coastlines and furious storms devastate homes, cultural sites, and contaminates
drinking water. Moreover, PICs face a variety of governance and economic issues
that range from law and order, political legitimacy, and social development.
These observations are made by Marles' interrogation of the chronic
underachievement of the Millennium Development Goals across the region. The
wealth and standard of living of the average Australian stands in stark contrast
to their Pacific Island equivalent.
Marles argues that if Australia reorients its relationship with PICs it can give
Australia more foreign policy options in the wider world long term. Improving
the Pacific will be a springboard for a more expansive foreign policy that
incorporates small island states around the world. Canberra can look west to its
Indian Ocean coast to work with the Seychelles or Maldives, with the possibility
to embark on joint ventures in those countries with India. Similarly, the
Caribbean provides ample opportunities to enhance intra-Commonwealth
relations and opens avenues to work with the United States. Broadly, success in
the Pacific would mark Australia as a nation that has capacity and expertise in
international development.
Unquestionably, the book is designed to push Australian Pacific policy in a more
fruitful direction. However, this is not a dry telling of a troubled region. Marles
aims to put the human experience at the heart of his pitch. He takes great effort
to describe the school choirs that greet international delegations, his time as a
schoolboy in Papua New Guinea, vibrant cultures, and the toll tropical storms
take on drinking water reserves. Only after establishing this people oriented
narrative does Marles put forward his desired solution. In his view there are four
policy areas where Canberra can quickly provide substantial support: climate
policy, defence cooperation, increasing access to the Australian economy, and
developmental assistance.
The Tides that Bind is an unpretentious entry point into Australia’s relationship in
the Pacific. It is very approachable and offers an insider’s insight into how policy
is formulated. The current federal government has already embarked on
improving its relationship with the region, and this book may have already
outlined what policy watchers could expect to come.
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