From Gallipoli to Afghanistan - Australia’s continued search for national identity

Australia, through fighting other people’s wars, is still attempting to emulate our two largest strategic allies Great Britain and the United States, by forging a new national identity based upon conflict. From Gallipoli to Afghanistan Australia has continually sent our armed forces to fight and die in other people’s wars but only when the leadership is taken by either one of our great and powerful friends. No matter which strategic partner we have found ourselves fighting with our commitment has remained the same, we are both willing and able to participate in other people’s conventional warfare as long as we have the support and security of our dominant ally. To Australia it does not matter whether that partner has been Great Britain or is the Untied States as long as the perception of these wars helps reassure us from what ADFA’s Anthony Burke indentifies as the two greatest interconnected themes in Australian military history our search for national indentify and our invasion anxiety.

Australia’s Participation in Other People’s Wars Ending Our Isolation and Building a National Identity through War
Our Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has stated that in Australia as well as in Anglo-Saxon society there exists a conservative tendency to view foreign policy as an extension of domestic policy. It is in this context that Australia has since its inception in 1901 has sort to establish itself as an independent nation free form British influence and control. Without a sense of national identity Australia has often found this a difficult task especially when it comes to developing an independent foreign policy. According the Samuel Huntington in the west national identity is defined through conflict with ‘the Other’ and Australia from Gallipoli to Afghanistan has sort to define itself global through conflict.

In fighting at Gallipoli the Other was represented by the Ottoman Empire with our stated task according to the Australian War Memorial being to help the British to fight there war. In Afghanistan the other is represented by both Al-Qaeda and The Taliban in which Australia is once again fighting under a great and powerful ally, the United States. Former Australian Army Officer Jim Molan describes Australian participation in the Afghan War as a battle to shape and define secure national boundaries for Afghanistan and to also help carve out a new political culture with a free and open market economy. As a result Australia is forging a new national identity through fighting other people’s wars by emulating the history of both our great and powerful friends Great Britain and the United States.

Australia Rebuilding the World in our Own Image: Alone No More?
When Australia’s founding fathers came together to write the Australian Constitution they made sure to incorporate the best aspects form both the British and American political systems. It is no coincidence then that the first law passed was the White Australia Policy, aimed to exclude the Other from Australia’s emerging society. Australia still looks to fighting against the other such as Afghanistan, to help it define for itself a sense of national identity built through conflict so as to help alleviate our national invasion anxiety. Therefore it is important for Australia as a state to be committed to helping our great and powerful friends fight other people’s wars such as those in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Rudd’s analysis of Australian foreign affairs being an extension of domestic policy is a clever observation as it makes good domestic policy for Australian governments to commit to strategic alliances with our great and powerful friends. Australian foreign policy whether from Progressive or Conservative governments has legitimising effect upon other domestic policies. As well from our participation in the US’s war against the other in Afghanistan we have shown our commitment to the ANZUS Alliance which emerged from the ashes of WWII. This policy is a good domestic vote winner considering the elevation of defence issues in Australian public opinion with our historical national invasion anxiety aimed at defending our content against the unspecified other.

Australia Making a Positive Contribution to Global Security
Australian should continue to be an active defence partner with the United States and its reshaping of the globe according to its own image. The Australian defence forces are saving billions of dollars in research and development money by using US supplied military hardware. By doing this Australian government revenue for other areas like the school improvement programs, the nationalisation of hospitals and the extension of higher education to class sectors of Australian society has been released. Our armed forces have gained militaristically with an increased combat readiness from having valuable ‘game time’ experience with their participation in multiple theatres of war such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

Today Australia has the advantage that we now have a strong Anglo-American national identity and no longer needs to feel isolated and therefore can let go of its historical invasion anxiety. Australia as a nation should keep on fighting other people’s wars especially as they emerge in the Indian Ocean Region for two main reasons. Firstly, the fighting of other people’s wars is helping Australia to project our national culture and values strategically into the South West Pacific and Indian Ocean regions. Secondly, it makes good domestic policy and is an electoral vote winner to be seen to work with our great and powerful friends in fighting against the Other as personified in Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.

To Sum Up
Australia with its active support for the imposition of the values based principles of parliamentary and participatory democracy upon other people’s is helping to establish a mixed Anglo-American democratic conceptualisation that is remarkably similar in nature to the one pioneered by Australia in 1901. Kevin Rudd is right in his analysis describing Australian foreign policy as an extension of domestic politics, with our decisions to go to war from Gallipoli to Afghanistan being based on what Anthony Burke calls our search for national identity and our invasion anxiety. As a result Australian politicians have sort to affirm our national identity through the imposition of similar systems of governance upon the Other from Gallipoli to Afghanistan with the support of our great and powerful friends. Australia therefore should keep on fighting other people’s wars especially in the Indian Ocean region which is home tho Al-Qaeda network to help secure our country from external threats and also to help us develop domestically a much needed national cultural identity.