Asian Alternatives

Australia's Vietnam Decision and Lessons on Going to War

Academic Monograph

Garry Woodard

Asian Alternatives re-examines Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War. Now with new foreword.

Opinion

“This is a serious and substantial piece of historical scholarship, flavoured by Woodard’s quirky style.”
(Professor Peter Edwards, Defender, Autumn 2005)

“This is a valuable and substantial contribution to our understanding of the policy decisions that led to Australia’s third largest military commitment of the twentieth century.”
(Professor Peter Edwards, Defender, Autumn 2005)

Read more reviews of Asian Alternatives at www.mup.com.au

About this Title

Asian Alternatives takes readers into the corridors of power in Canberra and inside Australia’s secret diplomatic dealings to analyse the forces that shaped Australia’s policies of the 1960s. Between 1959-1965, Australia had to decide whether or not to go to war, culminating in the controversial commitment in Vietnam. Strong ministers and courageous advisers manoeuvred and clashed.

Asian Alternatives describes how and why Australia made foreign and security policy in tempestuous times, based on deep research into Australia’s official documents, other contemporary sources and first-hand observation. By juxtaposing the different views of powerful personalities—Menzies, McEwen, Barwick, Hasluck, Paltridge and their officials—it demonstrates the significance of individuals in different approaches to decision-making.

The book compares the process of deciding to enter the 2003 war in Iraq with the lead up to Australia’s commitment to Vietnam. Asian Alternatives is the story of history repeating itself.

Supplementary digital content is available from
www.mup.com.au

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: The Foreign Policy Setting
Chapter 2: Barwick’s Introduction to Foreign Policy: Laos 1959-62
Chapter 3: Barwick and Indonesia I: Dutch New Guinea Goes West 1962
Chapter 4: Barwick and Vietnam I: Focus on John F Kennedy
Chapter 5: Indonesia II: Managing Confrontation 1963-64
Chapter 6: Vietnam II: Minimum Exposure 1962-64
Chapter 7: Vale Barwick, Ave Hasluck April 1964
Chapter 8: Post Barwick: Vietnam Becomes ‘Vital’
Chapter 9: The Month Before the Vietnam Decision
Chapter 10: The Die is Cast: December 1964
Chapter 11: Between the Cup and the Lip, the Decision and its Announcement: December 1964 - April 1965
Chapter 12: The Role of External Affairs: Warmongers or Good Public Servants?
Chapter 13: Why the Commitment, and Why the Battalion?
Chapter 14: Theories and ‘Lessons of History’
Chapter 15: Were there Alternatives for Australia?
Chapter 16: Barwick not Hasluck: a Counter-Factual
Appendix: Enduring Features in Decision Making (Vietnam Pointing to Iraq)

About the Author

Garry Woodard is Senior Fellow in Political Science at the University of Melbourne and a former Ambassador in Asia. In 2002 he was the National Archives of Australia’s Frederick Watson Fellow.

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978-0-522-85345-2