The Rudd Government should brace itself for some cool reactions from Australia's Asian neighbours if it intends to make the EU-style Asia-Pacific Community idea a centrepiece of its foreign policy, according to Queensland Liberal Senator Russell Trood.

“This is a recycled idea from the Hawke and Keating era and from Labor's ‘grand vision’ style of foreign policy making," Senator Trood said.

"Anybody who knows anything about the Asia Pacific region knows that the application of European models of regionalism to such a diverse part of the world as East Asia or the broader Asia Pacific is simplistic – and unlikely to succeed."

A former professor of international relations, Senator Trood said he was extremely sceptical that Australia's regional neighbours, or the United States, for that matter, would be ready to embrace Mr Rudd's very ambitious plan.

"For a start there are already a large number of existing regional institutions whose roles and responsibilities need to be developed and/or more clearly defined before creating yet another regional structure,” Senator Trood said.

“Building one of these institutions, perhaps APEC, into a stronger more comprehensive regional organisation offered better prospects for regional integration."

Senator Trood said that this is now the second new regional institution that Mr Rudd has proposed in as many months. “Just last month the PM was advocating that the Six-Party Talks become a more permanent arrangement and that Australia had a natural interest in becoming a member. Precisely how many institutions should Australia help to create and join in the region?” Senator Trood asked.

Aside from the fact that the plan appeared not to have been fully thought through, Senator Trood noted that Labor governments had a rather uneven record in trying to build regional institutions.

“The Hawke and Keating Governments attempted to broker this kind of East Asian union, and while there was some success with APEC, the desire to create a whole-of-region community – something former foreign minister Gareth Evans called the ‘East Asian Hemisphere’ – failed.

“A key reason for the failure was the perception that Australia was engaging in megaphone diplomacy, trying to force its ideas on the region without adequate consultation or discussion.

“There is no evidence that the Rudd government has learnt from this mistake – on the contrary – given the difficulties in our relations with several Asian countries, it seems determined to repeat them.

“The Evans’ idea failed to attract support when he presented East Asia Hemisphere idea in Kuala Lumpur and Sydney, and was later ridiculed when he presented a map which inflated the size and relevancy of Australia in the region in Brunei.

“Malaysia, among others, expressed its mistrust of the Evans’ plan, pointing out that Australia was a separate continent and not part of the region.

“Relations with Malaysia are much improved since then, but the need to prepare the diplomatic ground for major policy initiatives remains. This is an elemental part of good foreign policy and should be part of Mr Rudd's 'creative middle power diplomacy' but it has been conspicuously absent from his approach to foreign affairs during his six months in office.

“Australia has a great deal to contribute to the growth of East Asian and Asia Pacific regionalism, but it is highly unlikely that Mr Rudd's latest ambitious plan for institution building will help to impress neighbouring countries of our capacity to do so.”