Paul Soyez

This thesis demonstrates why and how France and Australia are currently engaged in a process of diplomatic and economic mutual empowerment as part of their smart power strategies. This rapprochement has been possible owing to thirty years of diplomatic efforts to overcome ongoing culturally and historically constructed misunderstandings and conflicts. The research investigates the historical dynamics behind this ambiguous relationship. It analyses the actors, mechanisms and outcomes relevant to the transformation of the French-Australian bilateral relationship between 1985, a moment of strong tensions between both countries because of France’s Pacific policies, and the present time when Paris and Canberra are closer than they have ever been since the creation of their Enhanced Strategic Partnership in 2017. This thesis follows an original approach. It encompasses constructivist theories and Joseph Nye’s concept of “smart power”, and it is based on the study of French and Australian archives and on expert interviews. This thesis argues that mutual empowerment is the response of two different middle powers, one global and one regional, to global threats and is a modernising tool for France and Australia’s diplomacies. This progressive empowerment has been possible because of the settlement of three main conflicts between France and Australia pertaining to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), French nuclear testing as well as Australia’s opposition to French policies in New Caledonia. However, the progressive rapprochement between France and Australia has primarily been possible because French and Australian policy-makers have instituted constructive opportunities for dialogue and cooperation in order to overcome their ongoing misperceptions. French-Australian cooperation, originally supported by the economic interests of its business communities, primarily aims to tackle common security issues. Canberra and Paris increasingly share the same traditional and non-traditional threats to their security due to the current context of power transition among states and power diffusion to non-state actors. The enhancement of the French-Australian Strategic Partnership is a response to this challenging global context and takes part into Australia and France’s reengagement in the Indo-Pacific region. This thesis provides insight into a significant trend in International Relations: middle powers’ adaptation to regional and global challenges through mutual empowerment and smart power strategies.