Launch: The Curious Diplomat by Lachlan Strahan (Sydney, Sunday 14 December)

From India to the Info-Pacific, a riveting insider’s account of diplomacy and politics, and Australia’s position in the world.

Lachlan Strahan spent his career as a diplomat and an ambassador in some of Australia’s most important postings, including India, Germany, Korea and Solomon Islands. He was involved in some of Australia’s biggest diplomatic challenges, from the spate of violence against Indian students in Australia to weapons discussions to Australia’s interests at the United Nations.

Working with prime ministers and foreign affairs ministers including Kevin Rudd, Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull, Gareth Evans, Alexander Downer, Marise Payne and Penny Wong, Strahan had a unique insight into Australia’s foreign policy in the Indo-Pacific and beyond for more than three decades. In this lively account, Strahan reveals how Canberra sees Australia and how our allies and adversaries see us, and offers a valuable perspective on what Australia can do to supercharge our relationships in the Indo-Pacific.

Please RSVP by Monday 11 December.

Lachlan Strahan is a historian and former diplomat. His book Australia’s China (1996) has become a key work on Australia–China relations. His account of a series of crimes in Papua New Guinea after the Second World War, Day of Reckoning, was shortlisted for the 2006 NSW Premier’s Australian History Prize, and his most recent book, Justice in Kelly Country – which traces the story of his great-great-grandfather, a policeman who hunted Australia’s most notorious bushrangers – was shortlisted for the 2023 Prime Minister’s Award for History.

James Curran is Professor of Modern History at Sydney University, where he specialises in Australian and American political and foreign relations history. A former analyst with the Office of National Assessments, he was also a Fulbright Scholar at Georgetown University in Washington DC and later the Chair of Australian History at University College Dublin. James has authored a number of books, including The Power of Speech, Curtin’s Empire, The Unknown Nation (with Stuart Ward), Unholy Fury: Whitlam and Nixon at war, Fighting with America; Why saying no to America wouldn’t rupture the US alliance and, most recently, David Campese. His poetry has been published in Meanjin and Quadrant, and his rugby writing in France’s twice weekly Midi-Olympique. He writes a fortnightly column on foreign affairs for the Australian Financial Review.

Read more about The Curious Diplomat here

Enquiries to sarah.cannon@monash.edu