Momentum Media has welcomed Australia's 30th Prime Minister and former treasurer of Australia, Scott Morrison as a special guest for the Defence Connect podcast.
Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison with Momentum Media's Defence Connect team.
Momentum's Defence and defence industry brand, Defence Connect, hosted the former Australian Prime Minister in the North Sydney office earlier this month on 7 May.
Morrison discussed general life after Parliament and the geopolitics of the Indo-Pacific, with podcast host and Defence Connect senior journalist Robert Dougherty.
During the podcast, Morrison also discussed his new role as non-executive vice-chairman at American Global Strategies, and as adviser with venture capital firm DYNE.
In addition, the former Prime Minister explained his recent visit to South Korea, Australia’s relationships in the Indo-Pacific as well as speculation surrounding defence companies Hanwha and Austal.
Morrison also discussed the modern, grey-zone Cold War between the United States and the People’s Republic of China, neighbourhood partnerships and a recent incident between a PLA fighter jet and a Royal Australian Navy helicopter.
"It is now the orthodox position in the United States that China is a strategic competitor, to put it most diplomatically," he said during the podcast recorded on 7 May and released on 9 May.
"Are we in a cold war with the People's Republic of China... well you know academics will debate that endlessly. But I tell you that it certainly feels like it and I think a lot of the signs that you see in sort of a classic cold war definition are evident.
"It's different to what we saw with the Soviets (Soviet Union) and I think because people's experience of a cold war is really only in the Soviet context. That is one form of a cold war, but they take many different sorts of guises.
"When you think about the PRC, is there an ideological difference between what they're seeking to pursue globally and what our sphere does? Is it universal? Is it multi-theatre and multi-domain? Certainly, when I look at what a cold war is, there are many similar features."
The empowerment of Australia’s closest with Nauru and the Solomon Islands, and maintaining the Indo-Pacific status quo are critical to Australia's strategic future, according to Morrison.
During the podcast, he also discussed AUKUS trilateral partnership, US presidential leadership, politics and his own experiences with Australian Defence Force equipment such as the F-35 stealth aircraft, Bushmaster protected mobility vehicles and his personal favourite – the Nimitz Class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.
You can listen to the episode here or in the player below.