Susannah Patton

Director, Southeast Asia Program
Areas of expertise

Indo-Pacific strategy; Australian foreign policy; Southeast Asia.

Susannah Patton
Biography
Publications
News and media

On leave until April 2024

Susannah Patton is Director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute and the Project Lead for the Asia Power Index, the Institute’s annual data-driven assessment that maps the changing distribution of power in the region. Her research on Southeast Asia is focused on strategic alignment dynamics and the roles of external powers including the United States, China and Australia.

Before joining the Lowy Institute, Susannah was a Research Fellow in the Foreign Policy and Defence Program at the United States Studies Centre. Her commentary and analysis have featured in Australian and international outlets, including The New York Times, Foreign Policy, Australian Financial Review and The Interpreter. Before leaving government, she worked in various Southeast Asia-focused positions in the Australian government, including as a Senior Analyst in the Southeast Asia Branch at the Office of National Intelligence, in the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit Taskforce in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and as a diplomat in the Australian Embassy in Bangkok. Susannah holds first class honours degrees in law and political science from the Australian National University.

Supporting democracy without fighting autocracies
Supporting democracy without fighting autocracies
A binary Australian foreign policy isn’t on the cards. Engagement is still the best way to support regional democracy.
Thailand's efforts to build Mekong bloc deserve support
Commentary
Thailand's efforts to build Mekong bloc deserve support
Diplomatic alignment will strengthen area's hand in dealing with outside powers. Originally published in Nikkei Asia.
Debating Southeast Asia’s future
Debating Southeast Asia’s future
Insights from six of the region’s most interesting economic thinkers show the pathway to collective growth is not clear.
Conversations: The South China Sea - Has the United States lost to China?
Podcasts
Conversations: The South China Sea - Has the United States lost to China?
Susannah Patton talks to Greg Poling, Director of the Southeast Asia Program and Director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and…
What the Philippines has at stake in Taiwan
What the Philippines has at stake in Taiwan
Strategic choices by Manila will matter to Washington and Beijing.
New directions in Australia-Southeast Asia relations
New directions in Australia-Southeast Asia relations
How the Albanese government could refocus on Southeast Asia in 2022 – and beyond.
China Is Beating the U.S. in the Battle for Influence in Asia
Commentary
China Is Beating the U.S. in the Battle for Influence in Asia
Originally published in The New York Times.
The uses and the limits of the Quad
Commentary
The uses and the limits of the Quad
The Quad prevents China getting its own way all the time. But bilateral relations in the rest of the region are just as important in constraining Beijing. Originally published in…
Conversations: Marcos Jr landslide in the Philippines: where to for Manila’s foreign policy?
Podcasts
Conversations: Marcos Jr landslide in the Philippines: where to for Manila’s foreign policy?
In this episode of Conversations, Susannah Patton talks to Charmaine Willoughby, Assistant Professor at De La Salle University in Manila, about the foreign policy…
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