The EU does a pretty neat line in paying French farmers to be inefficient and creating stupendous levels of regulation, but it has pretty much failed in its attempts to forge a continent-wide society based on common values. The movement towards a federal European superstate seems far slower than it was a decade or so ago, partly because the newer members have only recently emerged from the Soviet empire and have no real desire to be sucked into another one.

How likely, then, is "a European Union-style East Asian community"? Not very. An East Asian trade agreement would be of some value, but an EU-style administrative behemoth seems like a pretty unconvincing option for a region of such enormous diversity. If Western and Central Europe can't get it together, how is East Asia going to succeed?

And, if such a bizarre beast did miraculously come into existence, Australia would be incredibly foolish to want to be a member of it. Our history, values and institutions have far more in common with the nonexistent EU consensus than they would with its East Asian equivalent, but not nearly enough to make EU membership an attractive option for us. The UK – obviously the EU country with which we have the most in common – is a far from enthusiastic participant in Brussels’ bureaucratic quagmire. Why? Basic differences of values and institutions.

In an era when communication and transport technologies have made it infinitely easier to keep in touch over great distances, the quaint insistence on geographical regionalism seems increasingly blinkered and anachronistic. Of course Australia needs partnerships: we should work towards freer trade wherever we can, but for closer economic, administrative and governmental integration, we should be working more closely with countries that share our basic values, our history, our institutions.

The most obvious choices are New Zealand, Canada and the UK. Moves towards a federation of these four countries would be a far more rational enterprise than any “European Union-style” cross-cultural experiment.

The fact that Mr. Cooke works for the housing industry automatically makes him suspect. That industry is all grow, grow, grow to the detriment of population, environment and prices. It is one of the main forces behind big immigration, and anything-goes social consequences.

We have good relationships with Asia now with regard to trade, culture and defence. We don’t need to form a club for big business.

Australia should not engage directly in any EU-inspired free market. What we should be doing is focusing on developing a special partnership with the EU (the opportunity to become a full member was lost years ago) and NAFTA whilst developing linkages with asia.

Australia is, and always will be, predominately a european country. Having lived and done business in Asia for nearly 20 years and Europe for 15 years before that, it is much easier to do business with people you share a common culture with. Thus the focus should be on fostering our historical ties with Europe whilst also embracing an asian economic, but not cultural or social, future. The best way to do this is via stronger ties with the EU and US whilst developing special partnerships with ASEAN and East Asian nations.

Asian nations will never - at a fundamental level - accept us as 'one of them' so we shouldn't try to change this, but instead work on developing our own unique identity - a european-dervied culture sitting on the edge of Asia and the pacific with bright, hard-working people. We don't need to 'belong' to any grouping to be strong.

Arguably the future world will be based on the free movement of capital and people (distorted by politics).

If one accepts that this is the most likely future then joining a political block is a dead end. However managing a path towards free trade including labour mobility will be of long term advantage.
Obviously the various costs in transacting trade (including trade in labour) will affect the quantity and profit of the trade.
Australian trade with Asia will obviously be a major component in our trade and thus must be an important component in our development.

I think the EU has been spectacularly successful in promoting democracy. It's members have traded souvereignty for stability. After WWI most of Europe was democratic, a generation later, just prior to WWII most of the new democracies had collapsed. So far no members of the EU have abandoned democracy. Indeed the prospect of EU membership has created the impetus for much democratic reform and a couple of democratic revolutions.

Sure the EU has some bad points, the CAP is a response to the decade of food rationing _after_ WWII. I think that in due time it will be removed.

An asian block would be very different. The EU covers only 5% of the worlds population and has similar cultures and religions. Asia covers more than 50% of the worlds population and is culturally and religiously very diverse. Has vastly different political systems. Most nation have very recent souvereignty and strong nationalism. The big 4 in the EU have roughly similar populations. China and India dwarf everyone else.

I'd be surprised if anything EU-like survives the first stress test. Perhaps we should take the view that it took 50 years for the EU to get where it is now.

Should we be part of an asian block? I think so. By being a player we can at least represent our interests. If it is not going in a direction we like we can always jump out.

I think that the article has a lot of merit. It does mean that Aussies will all have to learn a foreign language, but I have always felt that that was in any case an obligation on us all.

The thinking that the world is getting smaller is overdone. Time zone differences will always exist and it will always be quicker to travel to South east Asia than to Europe or America. I know because I deal with both.

No one has suggested that an Asian trade grouping will have the same uniformity as the EU. It will be predominently a trading area. There are differences between individual Asian countries as there are between them and us. The Asian trading block will be unusual but we either accept it and benefit or stay out and suffer.

For those who are curious and flexible it will be a wonderful challenge, for the arrogant and the Anglo-insular it will be a problem.