The Honorable Dr. Kevin Rudd, former prime minister of Australia and Australia’s Ambassador to the United States, will speak on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Student Union 272, 1502 Cumberland Avenue.
As a leading analyst on China, Rudd will speak to the roles of the United States and other Western allies in an increasingly contested region.
The Indo-Pacific region represents a critical crossroads of global stability and evolving strategic competition across the spectrum of economic, trade and security issues. While major powers share a mutual interest in maintaining peace and avoiding open conflict, the risk of miscalculation or escalation continues to grow amid complex regional dynamics. The implications of any disruption in this region would extend far beyond its borders, with significant economic, security and geopolitical consequences that could shape the global order for years to come. This underscores the importance of sustained collaboration among allies and partners to strengthen deterrence, manage tensions, and support a stable and secure Indo-Pacific.
Ambassador Rudd served as Australia’s 26th prime minister from 2007 to 2010, then as Minister for Foreign Affairs, before a second term as prime minister in 2013. He was a member of the Australian Parliament from 1998 to 2013. Prior to his current appointment, Dr. Rudd was president and CEO of the Asia Society Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. Ambassador Rudd graduated with honors in Asian Studies from the Australian National University and received his doctorate from Oxford University in 2022.
The talk is open to the public. Russ is the first former prime minister of any nation to speak at the Baker Center.