Hayley Channer, Visiting Scholar at the East-West Center in Washington and Analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), explains that "With Australia's gains in Northeast Asia and perhaps a greater sense of optimism about the contributions of US allies, the atmosphere is ripe for Obama to make additional gains."

The views expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of the East-West Center or any organization with which the author is affiliated.