Editing Foreign relations of Australia (section)

===World War II===
The first accredited diplomat sent to a foreign country was [[Richard Casey, Baron Casey|Richard Casey]], appointed as the first Minister to the United States in January 1940.<ref>Roger John Bell, ''Unequal allies: Australian-American relations and the Pacific war'' (Melbourne University Press, 1977)</ref> This was followed shortly after by the arrival of the first Australian high commissioner to Canada,<ref>*[https://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/canada/canada-country-brief Canada country brief]* Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Retrieved 12 February 2022.</ref> and by appointments of Ministers to Japan in 1940 and China in 1941.  With the entry of Japan into the war in December 1941 and the consequent heightened vulnerability of Australia to attack, a critical decision was made by the Curtin Government to more closely seek the military protection of the United States. Since that time, United States has been the most important security ally. The close security relationship with the United States was formalized in 1951 by the Australia, New Zealand, United States Security ([[ANZUS]]) Treaty which remains the cornerstone of Australian security arrangements.{{cn|date=January 2025}}

In parallel with the evolution of the British Empire to the [[Commonwealth of Nations]], Australia progressively took responsibility for fully managing its foreign relations with other states.  Australia concluded an agreement in 1944 with New Zealand dealing with the security, welfare, and advancement of the people of the dependent territories of the Pacific (the ANZAC pact).<ref>Joseph Gabriel Starke, ''The [[ANZUS]] Treaty Alliance'' (Melbourne University Press, 1965)</ref>  Australia was one of the founders of the [[United Nations]] (1945) and the [[South Pacific Commission]] (1947), and in 1950, it proposed the [[Colombo Plan]] to assist developing countries in Asia.  After the war, Australia played a role in the [[Far Eastern Commission]] in Japan and supported Indonesian independence during that country's revolt against the Dutch (1945–49).<ref>E. G. Whitlam, "Australia, Indonesia and Europe's empires." ''Australian Journal of International Affairs'' (1980) 34#1 pp: 3–12.</ref>