Behind the recent spat between Defence Minister Richard Marles and his senior Defence advisors lies a hidden issue: are the governance arrangements for Defence’s high-level decision-making fit for purpose or do they need to be …
Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) Director General Mike Burgess’ Annual Threat Assessment highlighted the principal threats to Australia’s security—in ASIO’s 75th anniversary year. One of the positives from these public announcements, and this was Burgess’ …
The state of deterrence against China in the Indo-Pacific is constantly adapting to the evolving threat Beijing poses to the United States and its allies on multiple fronts. But a growing number of US military …
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine demonstrates how conflict impacts food security. This nexus will be exacerbated by the impact of climate change, as factors such as increasing temperatures, rising sea levels and frequent hazards become more …
On the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of his country, Ambassador Vasyl Myroshnychenko has delivered a blunt and heartfelt message to Australia—Ukraine is fighting our war. And it needs more help from Australia and like …
Released 10 months after the defence strategic review (DSR), the annexed and long-awaited review of the Royal Australian Navy’s surface combatant fleet has finally brought some much-needed clarity on the RAN’s ambitions to expand and …
Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s interview this month with Russian President Vladimir Putin showcased a seductive but dangerous myth. Carlson got the reaction he deserved from most mainstream foreign affairs commentators: ridicule at his …
The SSN AUKUS ‘optimal pathway’ calls for the UK to build the first of the nuclear powered and conventionally armed attack submarines at Barrow in Furness, starting as early as the late 2020s. The submarine …
Ana Montes was US Intelligence’s ‘Queen of Cuba’. The Defence Intelligence Agency’s leading Central America analyst; go-to voice on Cuban intentions and capabilities; eldest daughter of a family dedicated to US Government service. She was …
We may never know exactly how and why Alexei Navalny died in the remote Arctic penal colony where he was detained. The communiqué Russian officials issued within two minutes of the popular opposition leader’s reported …
Indonesia’s success in deploying Chinese capital and innovation to become the dominant force in the global nickel industry has been achieved in the face of concerted opposition from the European Union through the World Trade …
The Singapore government has designated Philip Chan, a naturalised Singapore citizen from Hong Kong, as a ‘politically significant person’. It assessed that Chan was susceptible to foreign influence and willing to advance those interests, essentially …
Early 2024 has not been kind to investors in critical minerals. Media outlets across Australia have run with headlines talking of ‘crash’, ‘crisis’ and ‘collapse’, with many blaming China and Indonesia for the slump— especially …
Australians should take pride in our prompt and generous response to Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Australia’s ongoing assistance to Ukraine, which is approaching one billion dollars, mostly in the form of …
This week’s unveiling of the expansionary blueprint for Australia’s future naval surface fleet brings with it a golden opportunity to revive defence cooperation between Australia and its occasionally ambivalent ally, New Zealand. Specifically, the announcement …
War in the Indo-Pacific is a real possibility. Increased competition, a growing trust deficit between global and regional powers and potential miscalculations heighten the danger. There needs to be a more engaged Australian discussion on …
Vital new dimensions overtake the ‘C’ cliches of Australia’s old relationship with India—cricket, curry and Commonwealth. The new C words are community and commerce and contest in the Indo-Pacific—and China. Community is a concept broad …
The forces of demand driven by the global energy transition and supply limited by geopolitics are coalescing to make yet another mineral globally ‘critical’—uranium. Australia’s rich economic geology has endowed it with the world’s biggest …
Over decades, a truism has matured that modern technology, surveillance systems and weapons have evolved to the point where surface warships will not survive in a high intensity conflict. So, given the major increase in …
Not for the first time, the central figure at this year’s Munich Security Conference was someone not in attendance. This year was Donald Trump’s turn. Like most participants at this annual ‘Davos of Defence’, I …