Australias Northern Australia Infrastructure

Facility and Chinas Belt and Road Ini9a9ve:

Squaring Commercial Opportuni9es with
Na9onal Security

Emeritus Professor Carlyle A. Thayer

The University of New South Wales

Chinas Belt and Road Ini9a9ve

Silk Road Economic Belt

21st Century MariDme Silk Road
One Belt, One Road

NAIF
 Central Ques9ons
Should the Australian Government formally align itself with
Chinas Belt and Road IniDaDve or should Australian business
and industry pursue ad hoc commercial arrangements with
their Chinese counterparts?
Should Australia and China sign a formal Memorandum of
Understanding linking the Northern Australia Infrastructure
Facility with the Belt and Road IniDaDve?
What are the risks to Australian naDonal security?
 Commercial Considera9ons
Opportuni.es Opportuni.es
A MOU would enable Chinese Agriculture, energy, engineering,
funding for projects idenDed infrastructure, banking, nance,
with BRI resources, tourism, educaDon,
AQract Chinese partners in healthcare, legal services, etc.
Australian based BRI projects Show case experDse in policy
Partner with Chinese business coordinaDon, management,
beyond Australia in China and in consulDng, public-private
Belt and Road countries partnership, etc.

 Na9onal Security Considera9ons
Concerns Concerns
Foreign ownership of criDcal Undermining US leadership role
infrastructure in the region by extending
Ports, power grids, telecoms Chinese inuence at expense of
Chinas use of BRI projects as the United States
economic leverage to inuence
Australias decision-making Strategic and economic
inuence/dominaDon
Greater defence industry in NT PoliDcal, Hacking, Espionage
will aQract increased Chinese
state aQenDon Chinese community in Australia
Australias Northern Australia Infrastructure
Facility and Chinas Belt and Road Ini9a9ve:
Squaring Commercial Opportuni9es with
Na9onal Security
Emeritus Professor Carlyle A. Thayer
PresentaDon to InternaDonal Panel Looking North: A Two-Way PerspecDve
5th Annual Northern Australia Defence Summit co-sponsored by
Australian Defence Magazine and Northern Territory Government
Darwin ConvenDon Centre, Darwin, Northern Territory,
October 25-26, 2017