This thesis presents a study of John Howard’s leadership of Australian foreign policy from 1996 to 2003. It documents and examines the way in which John Howard, Australia’s national leader, managed the complex challenges presented by two major events in Australian foreign policy: the East Timor crisis and the war against Iraq. Because it is the national leader who speaks for the nation, the manner in which the Prime Minister articulates and communicates the country’s foreign policy is vitally important, both domestically and internationally. Two theoretical concepts—constant scanning and multidimensional diplomacy—are proposed and developed in this thesis to explore and analyse how national leaders, situated at the nexus of domestic and foreign concerns, manage the distinctive challenges presented to them in this position. They also assist in understanding and explaining John Howard’s particular approach to these two major foreign policy issues. This study demonstrates that both constant scanning and multidimensional diplomacy are useful descriptive and normative tools for examining ways in which national leaders communicate and implement their foreign policies in the increasingly interconnected political landscape. By tracing and documenting the trajectory of Howard’s foreign policy, this study finds that his skill and confidence in the area of foreign policy, and his command and control of the foreign policy process, all increased over time. The evidence also suggests that he developed a greater awareness of the need to employ both constant scanning and multidimensional diplomacy. However, as this study shows, his absolute commitment to the ANZUS alliance saw him relinquish the responsibility to employ them in the case of Iraq. This study draws on exisiting knowledge in the areas of leadership, political science and international relations as a basis for testing the proposed concepts of constant scanning and multidimensional diplomacy. It then explores the wider application of these approaches for leaders striving to balance domestic and international concerns and considers their importance for the security and stability of the international system.