Our new book on Australia, Brazil and China analyzes the shifting global order through a comparative study of Australia and Brazil, two democratic middle powers navigating an increasingly assertive China.
We argue that Beijing has constructed an “architecture of dependence” by leveraging trade, infrastructure, and processing monopolies to exert structural influence over partner nations.
While both countries share similar resource heavy economies, they have adopted divergent strategic paths in response to Chinese pressure. Australia has prioritized sovereignty by strengthening Western alliances and resisting economic coercion, whereas Brazilhas drifted toward deeper alignment with China-centric frameworks like BRICS.
Ultimately, we focus on whether middle powers can maintain genuine strategic autonomy or if they are destined to fall into a trap of permanent material and political subordination.