The conversation about acquiring nuclear-powered submarines continues to bubble along. Some commentators who previously supported acquiring conventional submarines to replace the current Collins class, such as former prime minister Tony Abbott, now favour the nuclear …
It can be hard to grasp the fundamental concepts of evolution because of the vast timeframes involved. But there are dedicated scientists who, after years of study in the Galapagos Islands, have actually observed evolution …
The world The UN Human Rights Council has released a report of an independent fact-finding mission on Myanmar that examined allegations of human rights violations by the country’s armed services against the Rohingya people. The …
One of the things that often struck me during my career as a civilian bureaucrat in the Defence Department’s capability development area was the relatively limited amount of public debate about our future armoured vehicle …
The world The world lost another one of its greats this week. Kofi Annan passed away after a short illness. Ramesh Thakur looks back at the former UN secretary-general and Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s achievements, …
One of the reasons countries support indigenous defence industries is to ensure their sovereign control over defence capabilities. The argument is that by having the ability to design, manufacture and sustain military equipment, a country …
As the Defence Department prepares to spend $10–15 billion buying the modern equivalent of the armoured knight, in the shape of 450 infantry fighting vehicles, it risks committing the army’s future to a capability with …
Much of the argument for building warships and submarines in Australia ultimately rests on the rather dubious logic that we’re on an island surrounded by water. But Australia is also surrounded by air, yet nobody …
With President Donald Trump having returned from his dumpster-fire-lighting tour of Europe, the media firestorm unleashed by his claims last week that the European members of NATO were not meeting their defence spending obligations, and …
The Australian National Audit Office’s public assessments of the health of major Department of Defence projects are invaluable—but the fact that the ANAO isn’t yet reporting on the $80-billion future submarine program or the $35-billion …
Australia’s special forces have been in the news due to allegations ranging from poor culture to potential war crimes, including arbitrary executions. These allegations have led to a number of Defence-initiated reviews and investigations. Much …
Something interesting happened at the Department of Defence’s Senate estimates hearing last week. Buried among the largely predictable and interminable questions about how much Defence pays eminent persons in advisory and advocacy positions were a …
