No Trump photo-op for the PM but a reminder where Australia’s future lies

The cancelled G7 meeting is a timely reminder that Australia’s most promising opportunities lie in deeper engagement with our region.

Leigh Howard

19 June 20253 min read

The cancelled meeting between Prime Minister Albanese and US President Donald Trump at the G7 summit has been interpreted by some as a diplomatic slight. That reading suggests more about our tendency to confuse access with influence and equate proximity to Washington with strategic success. Rather than a setback, Trump’s exit offers a useful prompt: a reminder that Australia’s foreign policy must not rely on any single relationship, handshake, or leader, particularly one so prone to unpredictability.

The United States remains our most important security partner, and AUKUS is a vital part of Australia’s long-term defence planning. That hasn’t changed. What this moment underlines is the need to place equal, if not greater, emphasis on cultivating the economic and diplomatic relationships that anchor our future, and those are overwhelmingly found in our own region.

Trump’s early departure from the G7 reinforces that Washington’s focus can shift without warning, and that even the closest allies are sometimes left waiting. In this case, it wasn’t just Albanese. Other partners were also affected. But the symbolism is telling. For Australia, it’s a prompt to double down on relationships closer to home.

To his credit, Albanese didn’t dwell on the cancelled meeting. He held constructive bilateral talks with Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung – leaders of two critical regional democracies and trading partners. These meetings may not generate headlines in the way a Trump photo-op would, but they are precisely where our diplomatic attention should be focused.

the skyline of the Jakarta business district on May 9, 2025. (Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP)

The skyline of the Jakarta business district last month (Bay Ismoyo/AFP via Getty Images)

This isn’t about diminishing the US alliance. It’s about recognising that a resilient foreign policy requires both breadth and depth. In a world where alliances are increasingly shaped by electoral cycles and individual personalities, Australia’s long-term interests lie in building stable, institutional relationships – especially with regional neighbours whose economies, values, and futures are closely linked to our own.

More than half of the world’s economic growth is occurring in Asia. It is home to Australia’s largest trading partners and a growing share of our business activity. Yet we continue to treat the region primarily as an export market, missing the broader opportunity. Despite decades of talk about deepening engagement, less than 12 per cent of Australia’s outbound investment goes to Asia. The United States and United Kingdom remain disproportionately favoured, despite offering slower growth and, in the case of the United States, increasing political and regulatory uncertainty.

Our future lies not in the meetings we miss but in the relationships we build.

The missed meeting with Trump is not a diplomatic crisis. It’s a moment to ask ourselves some harder questions. Are we prepared for the reality that our key alliance partner may act in ways that are more transactional, less predictable, and sometimes indifferent to established norms? And if so, are we building the relationships, capabilities, and confidence needed to lead more independently in our region?

Australia played substantial leadership roles in the creation of APEC, in the Cairns Group, and in regional peacekeeping. We’ve worked with ASEAN and others to support economic integration, stability, and open markets. To play that role today, we need to move beyond the default framing of walking a tightrope between Washington and Beijing. That metaphor wedges us at a time we need to state our interests with clarity and purpose. Australia can’t afford to be a middle power stuck in the middle.

In some ways, Trump has done us a favour. By putting unapologetic self-interest at the centre of US foreign policy, he’s created space for Australia to speak plainly about its priorities, separate from the alliance, something Australian leaders have often been reluctant to do for decades.

If the Trump presidency has taught us anything, it’s that Australia needs to think more clearly and speak more confidently about its own interests. That doesn’t mean walking away from old friendships. It means approaching them on firmer footing, while ensuring we’re not underinvesting in relationships that are essential to our economic resilience and regional stability.

Trump’s exit from the G7 may have disappointed those looking for a diplomatic moment. For those thinking strategically, it serves a purpose. It reminds us that our future lies not in the meetings we miss but in the relationships we build, especially in our region.

About the author

Leigh Howard

Leigh Howard is CEO of Asialink Business, which is hosted by the University of Melbourne and supported by the Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources.

Topics

Asia ASEAN Australia