Books by Jeffrey Wilson
Resource security is a new battleground in the international politics of the Asia-Pacific. With d... more Resource security is a new battleground in the international politics of the Asia-Pacific. With demand for minerals and energy surging, disputes are emerging over access and control of scarce natural resource endowments. Drawing on critical insights from political economy, this book explains why resources have emerged as a source of inter-state conflict in the region.
Jeffrey Wilson shows how resources have emerged as a new cause of tension between key regional powers, including China, Japan, Indonesia, Russia and the United States. He focuses on three in-depth case studies of contemporary resource conflicts in Asia; the regional scramble for oil and gas, the ‘iron ore war’ between Australia and China, and the threat of rare earth minerals to economic and military security.
International Resource Politics in Asia-Pacific will appeal to students and academics of international political economy, international relations and Asian studies. It will also be of interest to policymakers, practitioners, managers and analysts of the Asia-Pacific region.
Resource interdependence has been a major contributor to economic integration in the Asia-Pacific... more Resource interdependence has been a major contributor to economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region. Driven by industrialisation in Japan, Korea and more recently China, rapidly growing Northeast Asian steel firms have secured supplies of natural resources by building connections with mining firms in Australia, Brazil and Canada. Mutual interdependence has seen the fate of these two industries become intertwined, coming to form global production networks that connect the mining industries of the Pacific Rim to Northeast Asian steel industries through trade and investment ties. But by spanning multiple national spaces, these production networks unite many national economies while belonging exclusively to none. Who, therefore, is in control? How do the involved states and firms coordinate their activities within these production networks, and how are the economic gains distributed? Governing Global Production examines how states and firms coordinate their activities to govern global production in the Asia-Pacific steel industry.
Journal Articles by Jeffrey Wilson
International Relations of the Asia-Pacific
China’s Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a controversial addition to both the globa... more China’s Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a controversial addition to both the global and Asian economic architectures. Western critics have alleged it is a vehicle designed to achieve China’s geostrategic goals, while scholars have argued it marks China’s adoption of a ‘revisionist’ foreign policy strategy. This article argues that such interpretations are incorrect, as they fail to account for the evolution of China’s AIIB strategy. To secure a broad membership and international legitimacy for the AIIB, China compromised with partners during governance negotiations in 2015. Western country demands saw several controversial initial proposals dropped, the governance practices of existing multilateral development banks were adopted, and cooperative partnerships were developed with the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. This transition from a revisionist to status-seeking AIIB agenda reveals the flexibility of Chinese economic statecraft, and its willingness to compromise strategic goals to boost the legitimacy of its international leadership claims.
Asian Security
In 2008, rare earth minerals (REMs) shot to the top of the international agenda. When China began... more In 2008, rare earth minerals (REMs) shot to the top of the international agenda. When China began restricting exports of these critical materials, many claimed it was threatening a ‘REMs weapon’ against the US and Japan. Yet by 2014 the crisis had quickly abated, as China shelved its policies in the face of pressure from consumer governments. This article examines why REMs emerged – and then quickly disappeared – as a threat to international security in Asia. It first conceptualizes the geopolitics of critical materials, before analyzing the politics of the REMs crisis between Japan, China and the US. It argues that China’s ability to use REMs for diplomatic coercion was inherently weak, and is unlikely to pose a similar threat to international security in future years.
The Pacific Review
Of the recent transformations in the political economy of the Asia-Pacific, one of the most drama... more Of the recent transformations in the political economy of the Asia-Pacific, one of the most dramatic has been to the region’s trade architecture. For many years, Asian government were committed trade multilateralists: pursuing liberalisation either globally through the GATT, or regionally via APEC’s model of open regionalism. Underpinned by US and Japanese leadership, this system provided the foundation for the export-driven Asian economic miracle. But since the early 21st century, the system has been rapidly transformed. The proliferation of preferential trade agreements has threatened to undermine the cohesiveness of regional trade arrangements. The emergence of WTO-Plus style liberalisation, emphasising services, investment and intellectual property, marks the maturation of a system previously focussed on tariff reduction and manufacturing exports. Since 2011, competition between two ‘mega-regional’ proposals – the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership – is also indicative of new splits which cut across traditional developmental divides. Growing geopolitical rivalry between the US and China has also raised question of who will lead the next round of liberalisation in the region. Exploring these new trends, this article argues the trade architecture of the Asia-Pacific is entering is becoming more contested and fragmented, with major implications for economic regionalism in coming years.
A common criticism of the Minerals Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) was that it would ‘kill the goose tha... more A common criticism of the Minerals Resource Rent Tax (MRRT) was that it would ‘kill the goose that laid the golden egg’ for the Australian economy. Mining companies, their industry associations, and the Liberal-National Coalition all argued the MRRT would reduce Australia’s attractiveness for mining investment, and lead to ‘capital flight’ as resource firms shifted towards lower-tax competitors. To evaluate this claim, it is necessary to compare Australia’s resource policy regime (including, but not limited to, its taxation elements) against those of its principle competitors. This paper undertakes such an evaluation by comparing Australian resource policies with those of nine of its major mineral and energy competitor countries. This survey reveals that Australia’s comparatively high mining tax rates are partially offset by its ‘non-interventionist’ approach to resource policy; that it has retained good rankings on international political risk surveys; and that there is no evidence of capital flight occurring due to the MRRT. These data collectively suggest that the MRRT did not significantly undermine Australia’s attractiveness for international mining investment, despite widespreadperceptions to the contrary.
New Political Economy, 2015, 20(1): 85-106
Surging world energy prices, increasing oil market volatility and a nascent ‘energy transition’ a... more Surging world energy prices, increasing oil market volatility and a nascent ‘energy transition’ are posing major challenges for global energy governance. In response, there has been a proliferation in the number of multilateral bodies addressing energy issues in recent years, and a wide range of organisations now claim a role in facilitating intergovernmental energy cooperation. However, the practical achievements of these organisations have been very poor, with all suffering difficulties that have limited their ability to promote shared energy interests between states. This article examines the dynamics of multilateral energy organisations, arguing that the political economy features of energy – securitisation and attendant patterns of economic nationalism – explains why they have failed to develop more robust cooperative mechanisms. Ten global-level organisations are evaluated, and found to suffer from either membership, design or commitment issues that limit their effectiveness in global energy governance. These challenges are linked to the securitisation of energy, which has led governments to favour low-cost soft law approaches over potentially more effective hard law institutional designs. Moreover, the securitisation of energy poses limits for how far multilateral energy cooperation can proceed, and means contemporary efforts to strengthen these organisations are unlikely to succeed in coming years.
Australian Journal of International Affairs
The special issue this article opens engages with an apparent conundrum that has often puzzled ob... more The special issue this article opens engages with an apparent conundrum that has often puzzled observers of East Asian politics—why, despite the region's considerable economic integration, multilateral economic governance institutions remain largely underdeveloped. The authors argue that this ‘regionalism problématique’ has led to the neglect of prior and more important questions pertaining to how patterns of economic governance, beyond the national scale, are emerging in East Asia and why. In this special issue, the contributors shift analytic focus onto social and political struggles over the scale and instruments of economic governance in East Asia. The contributions identify and explain the emergence of a wide variety of regional modes of economic governance often neglected by the scholarship or erroneously viewed as stepping stones towards ‘deeper’ multilateralism.
Third World Quarterly, 2015, 36(2): 223-239.
The rise of new economic powers has seen increasing attention focussed on the international role ... more The rise of new economic powers has seen increasing attention focussed on the international role of the BRICS countries. Importantly, a common feature uniting the BRICS is that they are all resource-rich, and many analysts (and some BRICS governments) have argued that natural resources are one of the key factors propelling the rise of the group. This article explores the BRICS’ emerging status as ‘resource powers’, examining how resource wealth underpins their economic development and foreign policy strategies, and thus contributes to their growing influence in international affairs. It is argued that through the use of nationalistic mining and energy policies, the BRICS governments have exploited natural resources for both domestic-economic and international-diplomatic objectives. However, there are several challenges and emerging risks facing the BRICS’ resource strategies, which mean that resource wealth is making a positive – though inherently limited – contribution to the growing international status of the group.
Contemporary Politics, 2015, 21(4): 399-416.
Resource nationalism is on the rise around the globe. During the recent global resources boom, ma... more Resource nationalism is on the rise around the globe. During the recent global resources boom, many governments have adopted nationalistic policies to maximise the political and economic benefits from their mining and energy sectors. Existing theories of resource nationalism rely upon economistic bargaining models, which fail to interrogate how political processes shape governments‟ resource policy strategies. This article extends and develops these bargaining models by theorising the role of political institutions – specifically those found in rentier, developing and liberal-market economies – in determining patterns of resource nationalism. A survey of twelve major resource-producing countries reveals that contemporary resource nationalism takes a range of distinct forms, which are connected to differences in political institutions that structure the objectives and policies of governments. It is therefore argued that while economic dynamics function as an enabling factor, political institutions are an equally important conditioning factor shaping the distinctive forms of resource nationalism observed today.
Journal of Contemporary Asia, 2015, 45(2): 345-353
The emergence of “mega-regional” trade agreements has recently become the most significant trade ... more The emergence of “mega-regional” trade agreements has recently become the most significant trade policy issue in the Asia-Pacific. Since 2010, governments in the region have launched negotiations for two new trade agreements: the United States-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the ASEAN-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Differentiated by their membership, scope and level of ambition, the TPP and RCEP embody competing visions for how the Asia-Pacific trade system should evolve, and regional governments must now make choices over which initiative better serves their economic and political interests. This article explores the trade policy choice posed by these mega-regional trade negotiations, reviewing the evolution of the Asia-Pacific trade system, the recent emergence of the TPP and RCEP, and the competitive dynamics inherent in the development of the two proposals. It argues that four key considerations (trade policy ambition, the role of ASEAN, US-China geopolitical rivalry and defensive concerns) will be of key importance in informing regional governments’ decisions as the TPP and RCEP move towards completion in 2015.
Australian Journal of International Affairs, 2015, 69(2): 126-143.
In the early years of the twenty-first century, Asian regionalism is at a cross-road. While the r... more In the early years of the twenty-first century, Asian regionalism is at a cross-road. While the region is home to a broad array of multilateral organisations, the record of these bodies in fostering effective and legitimate cooperation has been decidedly weak. Drawing on insights from the work of David Mitrany on international cooperation, this paper contends that the key problem facing Asian regionalism is a predilection for ‘top-down’ rather than ‘bottom-up’ regionalism strategies. This top-down strategy has involved efforts to find a single institutional design for regional cooperation (similar to the experience of Europe), which has been hindered by geopolitical rivalries and a lack of shared consensus around what constitutes the ‘Asian region’. By considering the contours of inter-state competition in Asia, the track record of its existing regionalism efforts and insights from comparative regional studies, it is instead argued that Asia’s future is one of regions rather than a single region. As Mitrany suggests, the unique geopolitical context in Asia means that functionally-discrete and variegated strategies are likely to provide a more effective basis for regional cooperation. Indeed, trends towards such a functional approach to regionalism are already becoming evident in Asia today.
Australian Journal of International Affairs, 2015, 69(2): 224-245.
In recent years, efforts to institutionalise resource security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific re... more In recent years, efforts to institutionalise resource security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region have intensified. Soaring world prices for minerals and energy have seen a range of resource security strategies launched – through ASEAN, the ASEAN+3, APEC and the East Asia Summit – all of which aim to promote intergovernmental dialogue, policy coordination and the integration of regional resource markets. However, the practical achievements of these regional efforts have been limited, as none have advanced beyond dialogue activities to more formalised types of resource security cooperation. This article examines the dynamics of these abortive attempts to regionalise resource cooperation in the Asia-Pacific, arguing that economic nationalist resource policy preferences held by governments have acted as a major obstacle to cooperation. Through an analysis of national resource policy regimes and the outputs of recent cooperative efforts, it demonstrates how economic nationalism has encouraged inward-looking and sovereignty-conscious actions on the part of major resource players in the Asia-Pacific. As a result, intergovernmental resource cooperation has been limited to informal and voluntary ‘soft law’ initiatives, which have not made a substantive contribution to the resource security of economies in the region.
China's World, 2015, 1(1): 9-19.
The China-Australia investment relationship is rapidly expanding. Driven by the need to secure ac... more The China-Australia investment relationship is rapidly expanding. Driven by the need to secure access to natural resources, Chinese firms have made major investments in the Australian mining industry in recent years, bringing significant economic benefits for both countries. However, and similar to the experience of other countries hosting Chinese investment, this relationship has proven highly politically contentious. Anxieties have emerged about the behaviour of Chinese state-owned enterprises, key stakeholder groups in Australia have become divided on the appropriate regulatory response to surging Chinese investment, while the Chinese government has alleged Australian investment regulations discriminate against its firms. This article examines how political controversies in the China-Australia investment relationship have been managed, to explore what lessons this experience may offer for other countries where similar controversies have emerged. It reviews their emerging investment ties and the policy environments supporting them, considers the political disputes that have emerged surrounding Chinese investment in Australia, and explores how the Australian government has used ‘behavioural conditionality’ as a political management strategy. It concludes by arguing the Australian approach may offer a useful model for how other governments can balance the economic benefits and political risks associated with developing investment ties with China.
Asian Studies Review, 2014, 38(1): 15-32.
Soaring prices for minerals and energy are posing a major threat to the resource security of econ... more Soaring prices for minerals and energy are posing a major threat to the resource security of economies in Asia. As a result, many regional governments have launched new resource security strategies in the last few years. Most recent attention to resource security in Asia has focused on debating whether the Chinese government’s resource policies are mercantilist or liberal. This China-focused debate is too narrow to fully capture the nature of resource politics in Northeast Asia, since the governments of Japan and Korea have also recently launched their own resource security strategies. This paper considers regional-level trends in Asian resource politics by examining the causes, content and implications of the resource security strategies deployed by the consumer governments in Northeast Asia. It argues that growing resource security concerns, combined with a process of competitive policy emulation, have seen the Chinese, Japanese and Korean governments each adopt mercantilist resource security strategies over the last decade. Furthermore, the competitive nature of these mercantilist strategies is acting to intensify political and economic competition for resources between the Asian region’s three main economic powers.
The Pacific Review (2012), 25(4): 429-453
Following a historical commitment to multilateralism, in the last decade the trade policy initiat... more Following a historical commitment to multilateralism, in the last decade the trade policy initiatives of many states in the Asia-Pacific have turned to bilateralism through the negotiation of free trade agreements (FTAs). The corresponding proliferation of regional FTAs has thus far been understood to result from three broad motivations: a desire to advance trade liberalisation beyond WTO disciplines; mercantilistic efforts to secure preferential access to key export markets; and/or attempts to use FTAs to secure non-economic political gains. This paper argues that since the middle of the decade a new motive has emerged – the use of FTAs to improve resource security – particularly by import dependent resource consumers in Northeast Asia. As yet unexamined in the literature, this paper seeks to document and explain this trend. It analyses the recent emergence of resource security concerns as a new FTA motive; the corresponding shifts in the FTA strategies and initiatives of Japan, Korea and China; and the dynamics of an emerging race for resource-related FTAs between the three governments. Based on this analysis, it demonstrates that resource-related FTAs could potentially improve consumers’ resource security through either the liberalisation of trade, the extension of investment protections, or broader diplomatic gains with the targeted supplier. However, owing to supplier reluctance to enter into binding policy commitments for resource industries, their track record shows success in only the diplomatic dimension, and the prospects for a strengthening of their effects are poor. As a result, it is argued that while resource concerns have become a key motive for FTA initiatives in the Asia-Pacific region, they have not substantively improved resource security for its import-dependent states and are unlikely to do so in the future.
Resources Policy (2012), 37(3): 331-339.
This paper reviews the restructuring of the Asia-Pacific iron ore market in the wake of the rise ... more This paper reviews the restructuring of the Asia-Pacific iron ore market in the wake of the rise of the Chinese steel industry. Prior to the 2000s, this market was characterised by two key features – high firm-level concentration on both the producer and consumer sides, and price determination through annually negotiated benchmark pricing between Australian mining and Japanese steel firms. However, owing to rapid growth in the Chinese steel industry and its emergence as the region’s principal iron ore consumer, the Asia-Pacific iron ore market has been dramatically restructured during the last decade. This process has been accelerated since 2005 by Chinese governmental resource security policies, which have sought to address current record high iron ore prices through the use of foreign investment to sponsor new market entrants and the formation of an import cartel amongst the Chinese steel firms. This paper evaluates how these policies have driven restructuring in the Asia-Pacific iron ore market, through an analysis of the growth of China’s steel industry, Chinese resource security policies aimed at lowering iron ore import costs, and their effects upon the regional market’s ownership structure and price determination mechanisms. It argues that while Chinese investment and cartelisation policies have catalysed significant changes to the ownership and pricing structures of the Asia-Pacific iron ore market, they have carried only mixed benefits for the Chinese steel industry’s resource security.
Australian Journal of International Affairs, 2011, 65(3): 283-304
Since 2005, a burgeoning wave of Chinese investments has set off a new ‘minerals boom’ in the Aus... more Since 2005, a burgeoning wave of Chinese investments has set off a new ‘minerals boom’ in the Australian iron ore and coal mining sectors. While normally a welcome development, the state-owned and strategic nature of the investors has raised concerns in Australia about how these should be regulated. As a result, in February 2008 the Australian Government declared an intention to more closely screen foreign direct investment (FDI) from state-owned sources, which both supporters and detractors alike have claimed is evidence of ‘resource nationalism’ in Australia’s approach toward its trade and investment relationships with China. This paper challenges this understanding, through an examination of the characteristics of Chinese mining FDI, the dilemmas these present to the Australian Government, and the relatively restrained nature of its response. Through this, Australia’s FDI policy will be explained as a defensive move against the potential for strategic behaviour by Chinese investors resulting from their state-ownership, rather than any national program to subject minerals trade and investment to political control. On this basis, the paper will argue that Australian Government policy instead evidences a ‘resource liberalism’ approach, which intends to ensure that the governance of Australia’s minerals trade and investment with China remain market-based processes.
Papers by Jeffrey Wilson
Security Challenges, 2015
The ascent of China has irrevocably changed Australia’s external strategic environment. While
Chi... more The ascent of China has irrevocably changed Australia’s external strategic environment. While
China became Australia’s top trading partner during the mid-2000s, tensions in the bilateral
economic relationship have posed a series of complications for Australian policymakers. In this
article, we explore four areas where these complications have become salient: economic
asymmetries, Chinese state capitalism, the so-called resource curse, and tensions with
geopolitical imperatives. We argue these demonstrate that China’s rise is not only a security
challenge for Australia but also an economic one, which demands new strategies that are
sensitive to the challenges and vulnerabilities of the Sino-Australian economic relationship.
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Books by Jeffrey Wilson
Jeffrey Wilson shows how resources have emerged as a new cause of tension between key regional powers, including China, Japan, Indonesia, Russia and the United States. He focuses on three in-depth case studies of contemporary resource conflicts in Asia; the regional scramble for oil and gas, the ‘iron ore war’ between Australia and China, and the threat of rare earth minerals to economic and military security.
International Resource Politics in Asia-Pacific will appeal to students and academics of international political economy, international relations and Asian studies. It will also be of interest to policymakers, practitioners, managers and analysts of the Asia-Pacific region.
Journal Articles by Jeffrey Wilson
Papers by Jeffrey Wilson
China became Australia’s top trading partner during the mid-2000s, tensions in the bilateral
economic relationship have posed a series of complications for Australian policymakers. In this
article, we explore four areas where these complications have become salient: economic
asymmetries, Chinese state capitalism, the so-called resource curse, and tensions with
geopolitical imperatives. We argue these demonstrate that China’s rise is not only a security
challenge for Australia but also an economic one, which demands new strategies that are
sensitive to the challenges and vulnerabilities of the Sino-Australian economic relationship.
Jeffrey Wilson shows how resources have emerged as a new cause of tension between key regional powers, including China, Japan, Indonesia, Russia and the United States. He focuses on three in-depth case studies of contemporary resource conflicts in Asia; the regional scramble for oil and gas, the ‘iron ore war’ between Australia and China, and the threat of rare earth minerals to economic and military security.
International Resource Politics in Asia-Pacific will appeal to students and academics of international political economy, international relations and Asian studies. It will also be of interest to policymakers, practitioners, managers and analysts of the Asia-Pacific region.
China became Australia’s top trading partner during the mid-2000s, tensions in the bilateral
economic relationship have posed a series of complications for Australian policymakers. In this
article, we explore four areas where these complications have become salient: economic
asymmetries, Chinese state capitalism, the so-called resource curse, and tensions with
geopolitical imperatives. We argue these demonstrate that China’s rise is not only a security
challenge for Australia but also an economic one, which demands new strategies that are
sensitive to the challenges and vulnerabilities of the Sino-Australian economic relationship.