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In the post-war period Australian Prime Ministers have played a proactive role in formulating foreign policy towards Japan. This paper explores the role of executive leadership towards Japan and its impact on the bilateral relationship. The Howard period and current Rudd-led initiatives on whaling, nuclear disarmament, climate change and regional architecture are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

North-South issues as such do not figure prominently in Australia's international policy but are mostly implicit. These issues arise particularly in the context of Australia's relations with countries in its immediate vicinity, including the South Pacific, Indonesia and East Timor. There are also some global issues in the North-South context where Australia is affected. Australian governments, in developing policies relating to this context, have been influenced by a 'practical realism' that puts first priority on Australian interests as perceived by governments at any given time. The way in which those policies have been developed, in both the regional and the global contexts, can be assessed through an examination of issues relating to security and international economic relations. Australia's alliance relationship has a strong bearing on the way Australia approaches the security issues. In relation to international economic issues there are many commonalities with fellow producers of raw materials in the Global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the early post-war era, a Japanese revival was a source of profound concern to members of the Commonwealth, especially Australia and New Zealand. Britain, having abdicated the leading role in the Western Pacific to the United States, attempted to retain some influence in the region, but economic frailties and lack of Commonwealth unity undermined these efforts. Under American guidance, diplomatic, commercial and (to a lesser extent) security ties with Japan were later promoted, but elements of cooperation and competition persisted in Commonwealth relations with their former enemy. Ultimately, Britain, Australia and New Zealand placed their respective regional identities ahead of their Commonwealth loyalties. Japan took advantage of this situation to promote its own national interests. Hence, the wider aperture of the 'Commonwealth lens' throws into sharp relief the contours of a number of members' bilateral relationships with Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]