Relationship dossier
Australia
Cocos (Keeling) Islands
Relationship assessment
Australia administers the Cocos (Keeling) Islands as an external territory, with local government provided by the Shire.
Australia toward Cocos (Keeling) Islands
+25Australia administers the Cocos (Keeling) Islands under the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act 1955. The Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands provides local government within the territory.
Cocos (Keeling) Islands toward Australia
Not assessedOverall relationship
Not assessedHow to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
The Cocos (Keeling) Islands are an Australian external territory, not a sovereign state with an independent foreign policy. Australia governs the territory under the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act 1955, while local government is provided by the Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. The relationship is therefore one of national administration and local governance rather than conventional bilateral diplomacy.
Key developments
The Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act 1955 established the territory’s Australian legal and administrative framework.
Major uncertainties
- The division of responsibilities between Australian government agencies and the territory’s local government is not detailed here.
- The scope and implementation of Australian government programs specific to the territory are unclear.