Malaysia - Australia bilateral relations (1981-2003) analysis from the English school perspective

• Main Author: Rizal Zamani Idris
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English; English
• Published: 2018
• Subjects: DS597.33-597.34 Sabah. British North Borneo
• Online Access: https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/42182/1/24%20PAGES.pdf; https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/42182/2/FULLTEXT.pdf; https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/42182/

This thesis examines the bilateral relations between Malaysia and Australia in the era of Dr. Mahathir (1981-2003). The political ties between the two countries experienced several upheavals due to certain issues. Interestingly, despite those controversies, the overall relationship between them remained in-tact. This thesis explores two important aspects of the topic under study; the factors that had contributed to the souring of Malaysia-Australia political relations as well as the elements that had tied their overall relationship. This thesis adopts the English School (ES) perspective as its theoretical framework. The ES perspective argues that the absence of world government does not necessitate the absence of order. Order is attainable through the commonalities (common interests, common rules and common institutions) shared by the international society. As such, the commonalities held by Malaysia and Australia had been contextualized by the researcher in the study of bilateral relationship between the two states. The findings of the thesis reveal that several factors were identified to have soured the bilateral political ties between the two states; the insensitivity on the part of the Australian leaders, the role of the media, the element of ‘East versus West’ as well as the role played by the ‘poisoning alumnus’. The thesis also finds that the commonalities as argued by the ES perspective had become the forces that had shaped and kept their overall relationship in-tact. The thesis concludes that despite the political upheavals faced by both countries, the common interests, rules and institutions had become the ‘bonding glue’ that had endured their bilateral relations. As such, this thesis submits two major contributions. Theoretically, it expands the arguments of the ES theorists in the context of bilateral relationship, since not many studies under the ES paradigm, specifically on bilateral relationship were conducted. Empirically, based on the case study conducted on Malaysia-Australia relations, international society of the ES perspective became the ‘bonding glue’ that had kept their overall relationship ‘in-tact’ from which the role of leadership had almost been overwhelmed.