Are you there Australia? It's me, South East Asia

Are you there Australia? It's me, South East Asia

Published: March 25, 2026

Duration: 29:05

How much do we Australians really understand South East Asia? Australia has long prioritised neighbours further north when it comes to our strategic alliances, but as China rises as a great power, have our blind spots become our greatest weakness? 

Michael Wesley joins Geraldine Doogue and Latika Bourke (The Nightly) to make the case for appraising South East Asia as more than a holiday destination, and in particular, why we should be doing more to partner with Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. 

Guest: Michael Wesley, author of Quarterly essay Blindspot: Southeast Asia and Australia’s Future