{"id":902703,"date":"2026-09-23T16:34:28","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T16:34:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/902703\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T16:34:28","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T16:34:28","slug":"albaneses-un-visit-pm-warns-of-world-order-upheaval","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/902703\/","title":{"rendered":"Albanese\u2019s UN visit: PM warns of world order upheaval"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Rob<\/p>\n

September 23, 2026 \u2014 10:00pm<\/p>\n

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New York: Anthony Albanese will declare the post-1945 international order \u201cno longer fit for purpose\u201d and warn that Australia must help shape what replaces it as growing strategic competition between the United States and China transforms the Indo-Pacific<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In a major foreign policy address in New York, the prime minister will argue that the assumptions underpinning the global system since the end of the Cold War are being tested, forcing middle powers such as Australia to build new partnerships<\/a> while defending the rules that remain essential.<\/p>\n

\"PrimePrime Minister Anthony Albanese speaking to reporters in New York City on Wednesday, AEST.Dominic Lorrimer<\/p>\n

\u201cSince the end of the Cold War, the prevailing assumptions of international affairs were clear: openness was security; efficiency mattered more than resilience; and international rules would be observed as a matter of course,\u201d Albanese will tell the Atlantic Council\u2019s Global Citizen Awards dinner on Wednesday night, where he will be honoured alongside Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Formula One chief Stefano Domenicali and actor and singer Cynthia Erivo.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth those expectations are now being tested. The post-1945 world order is no longer fit for purpose. Universal institutions that remain necessary are now not always sufficient for the challenges we face.\u201d<\/p>\n

His speech carries echoes of the message Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney<\/a> delivered nine months ago at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland, where he said the \u201cold order is not coming back\u201d and urged fellow middle powers to unite to find a new way.<\/p>\n

Albanese will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday (New York time), where the two countries are expected to sign a bilateral security arrangement.<\/p>\n

As US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping prepare to meet at the White House on Thursday, Albanese sought several leaders of middle power nations, including Britain\u2019s Andy Burnham, Canada\u2019s Mark Carney and France\u2019s Emmanuel Macron, to help build consensus on several issues, including the rise of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

\"PrimePrime Minister Anthony Albanese during a meeting with UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham at the United Nations headquarters in New York City.Dominic Lorrimer<\/p>\n

But efforts appear to have been fruitless, as Trump very publicly rejected the push from more than 20 leading economies several times in his UN address, saying he was interested only in the economic benefits of winning the technology race, and not regulating AI\u2019s capacity.<\/p>\n

Albanese was also at loggerheads with the Trump administration, which has condemned Australia\u2019s plans to overhaul social media algorithms and regulate perceived harmful content. In a submission to the Albanese government, the US embassy described the reforms as \u201cfacilitating censorship\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not about giving government control; it\u2019s about giving people back control over what they receive on their devices, which is why it is framed in that way,\u201d Albanese told journalists in New York.<\/p>\n

The prime minister later met Trump at a UN leaders\u2019 reception, posting a picture of the pair on his social media platforms saying it was \u201calways good to catch up\u201d with the president.<\/p>\n

There is growing discontent within the group of middle powers at the lack of progress towards peace in the Middle East, Trump\u2019s war against Iran, and Russia\u2019s continued aerial bombardment of Ukraine after nearly five years. Several experts, including former prime minister Kevin Rudd<\/a>, have also warned about the increased risk of conflict in the Indo-Pacific over Taiwan in the coming years.<\/p>\n

Albanese will use his speech to set out a vision for Australia to help build a new international order rather than simply respond to the changes under way.<\/p>\n

\u201cAustralia\u2019s response to this is to actively seek to shape and build the order that replaces the old,\u201d he will say, while preserving \u201cthe rules that matter most\u201d and creating new partnerships and relationships.<\/p>\n

Related Article\"Donald<\/a><\/p>\n

The prime minister will identify the strategic competition between Washington and Beijing as the \u201cmost consequential factor\u201d shaping the Indo-Pacific, while rejecting the idea that the region should be viewed solely through the prism of the two superpowers.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur alliance with the United States is the anchor of Australia\u2019s foreign policy,\u201d Albanese will say. But he will also reaffirm his government\u2019s approach to China, Australia\u2019s largest trading partner, saying the country would engage in the national interest.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow Washington and Beijing manage their relationship matters profoundly,\u201d he will say. \u201cBut it cannot be the only lens through which we see the region.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Indo-Pacific is not a chessboard on which superpowers move the pieces. Its countries are not spectators. They are shaping its future and writing their own script.\u201d<\/p>\n

Albanese will argue that the upheaval of recent years, including war and the pandemic, has exposed the vulnerabilities of supply chains and forced governments to put resilience alongside economic efficiency.<\/p>\n

\u201cGovernments must build the capacity to withstand shocks they did not cause and cannot control,\u201d he will say.<\/p>\n

That will include strengthening Australia\u2019s sovereign capability while working with partners on economic security, critical supply chains and energy.<\/p>\n

The Atlantic Council dinner is one of the high-profile events of UN General Assembly week, with more than 700 senior government, business, military, media and civil-society figures expected to attend.<\/p>\n

Albanese is being recognised by the Washington-based think tank for his role in strengthening Australia\u2019s alliances and partnerships and promoting security and stability across the Indo-Pacific.<\/p>\n

Related Article\"United<\/a><\/p>\n

His speech places particular emphasis on Australia\u2019s expanding network of partnerships across the Indo-Pacific<\/a>, including its relationship with ASEAN and a growing web of security agreements with Pacific nations.<\/p>\n

He will describe the Pacific as \u201cboth a home and a family to Australia\u201d and say the region\u2019s priorities, sovereignty and culture must be respected.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor our Pacific neighbours, climate change is the most immediate security threat,\u201d Albanese will say.<\/p>\n

The speech will culminate in a concise formulation of the government\u2019s foreign policy.<\/p>\n

\u201cBuilding resilience without abandoning openness,\u201d Albanese will say. \u201cStrengthening regional partnerships without abandoning rules.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Australia would deepen its alliance with the United States and engage its largest trading partner, China, \u201cwithout allowing either relationship to define who we are\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn an uncertain world, leadership means showing up for one another, sharing burdens and giving our neighbours greater power to shape their futures,\u201d he will say.<\/p>\n

Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"RobRob Harris<\/a> is the national correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age based in Canberra. He is a former Europe correspondent.Connect via email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"September 23, 2026 \u2014 10:00pm Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":902704,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-902703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/902703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=902703"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/902703\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/902704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=902703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=902703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=902703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}