Since the end of World War II, Australia has enjoyed an ideologically simple security environment: all its core allies have been liberal democracies, and all its foes have been illiberal. The United States, the architect …
Articles by: "Nathan Attrill"
Meetings between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Taiwan’s Kuomintang (KMT) are now routine, no longer tentative or discreet but frequent and increasingly public. From 7 to 12 April 2026, KMT chair Cheng Li-wun is …
When Australians think about Taiwan, the focus is often narrow: a distant sovereignty dispute in the Taiwan Strait, or a potential flashpoint between China and the United States. This framing understates the scale of what …
In 2024, China’s united front system tried to love-bomb Taiwanese youth through cross-strait exchanges and outreach programs designed to cultivate goodwill and influence. In 2025, Beijing returned to a more traditional playbook: shaping how Taiwan’s …
China’s latest five-year plan enshrines artificial intelligence as a key driver of economic growth and technological innovation. While the United States still leads in frontier AI research and the most advanced models, China has focused …
Beijing’s primary concern in a Taiwan contingency is US intervention—but its planning would not stop there. China has the capacity to pressure key US allies, including Australia, even while focusing on the United States itself. …
Fresh from a decisive electoral landslide, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has emerged more politically secure than ever—despite Beijing’s attempt in 2025 to make her a cautionary example over Taiwan. Rather than isolating her, China’s …
China has built not only a military to coerce Taiwan, but an army of lawyers to intimidate and constrain it. In 2025, Beijing’s lawfare campaign shifted decisively from largely declaratory threats to active enforcement. The …
Xi Jinping’s latest purge of top military officers probably reduces the chance of China taking imminent, deliberate military action to seize Taiwan. But many interpretations of the event are possible, and some imply an increased …
Analysing China’s military activity around Taiwan often invites a simple question: what triggered it? Analysts tend to assume that spikes in aircraft sorties, naval deployments or coast guard operations must be a reaction to something …
Taiwan has an inadvertent, rarely acknowledged role in global affairs: it’s a kind of sponge, soaking up much of China’s political, military and diplomatic efforts. Taiwan absorbs Chinese power of persuasion and coercion that won’t …
China’s pressure campaign aims to bend Taiwan toward eventual annexation. But sustained coercion could weaken the liberal nature of its democracy even without a loss of sovereignty. The danger is that countering coercion can gradually …