74th WIAPS Seminar

This presentation examines the role of personal diplomacy in foreign policy through the case of the attempted deal for Japan to sell its Soryu-class submarines to Australia. In 2014, as Australia was preparing to replace its Collins-class submarines, Japan emerged as the frontrunner due to the ‘honeymoon’ relationship between Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. However, Japan ultimately lost the deal to France (and France then lost it to AUKUS). It is generally assumed that close personal relations between leaders are beneficial for bilateral relations and deepening foreign and security policy cooperation. However, it is found through this case study that close personal relations between leaders can be counterproductive in certain circumstances when bipartisanship and transparency are lacking.