The 2014 rap song ‘Move that dope’, by Future, Pharrell Williams, Pusha T and Casino, talks about the push to sell drugs, including crack cocaine, and enjoy the spoils of the trade. Its underlying message …
Articles by: "John Coyne"
This week saw two significant developments in Australian counterterrorism. Victoria Police arrested two young men and a boy in Melbourne, and charged the two men with planning a terrorist act and one with being a …
In January 2019, ASPI established its ‘North and Australia’s Security’ program to provide a sustained research focus on the security of northern Australia and its critical role in broader security—and for a good reason, as …
This week, an editorial in the Chinese state-run newspaper the Global Times alleged that the almost 80-year-old Five Eyes alliance of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States is an ‘axis …
US President Joe Biden has just signed an executive order launching a comprehensive review of America’s critical supply chains for strategically significant products and resources. Among those are rare-earth elements, supplies of which the Biden …
On 22 January, alleged drug lord Tse Chi Lop was arrested at Amsterdam’s Schipol airport as a result of an extradition request from the Australian Federal Police. Tse’s arrest would’ve been cause for celebration among …
For decades, the economic development of ASEAN member states was hindered by persistent shortages in high-quality infrastructure. The issue wasn’t a lack of desire but a lack of access to equity and investment. Securing foreign …
What a difference a year can make, so the saying goes. In August 2019, ASPI published Strong and free? The future security of Australia’s north. Since then, Australia has battled bushfires, wild storms and a …
Apocalyptic works of fiction, like Stephen King’s The stand and Wolfgang Petersen’s Outbreak, have a relatively standard script for pandemics. Think an initially small-scale mystery illness identified by a weary doctor. Cue the scene where …
Nations aren’t built in silos. Nation-building, especially in Australia’s north, requires vision, leadership, cooperation and courage in spades. The Department of Defence is a significant economic player in northern Australia, and its investments have intrinsic …
A criminal who wanted to smuggle a shipping container of illegal cigarettes into Australia could expect to make almost $10 million in profit. Of course, these criminals first need to get their products into the …
To make sure that northern Australia is ready to support a range of defence contingencies, the region must have socially and economically prosperous communities. Supporting the development of these kinds of communities is no easy …