The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation often cancels the passports of suspected terrorists, and has increasingly done so to prevent Australians joining jihadist groups in Syria and Iraq. ASIO has issued adverse security assessments for more …
Defence analysis is my core business, so I thought I’d share my views about Australia’s decision about going to war again in the Middle East. As I’ll argue below, I think we’re doing the right …
Recent media debate around the increased terrorism alert and concern for national security begs the question of whether the current Australian ministerial framework for domestic security would benefit from reform. Nobody seriously suggests that a …
It’s always good to see debate about civil liberties and security legislation here on The Strategist. With a number of changes to security legislation in the wind, it was appropriate that my colleagues Toby Feakin …
Last week I suggested that Australia takes two steps with regard to those Australians fighting in the Syrian conflict, who’ve been trained by extremist groups and gained battlefield experience. First, our government should release a …
I wholeheartedly agree with Andrew Zammit’s thoughts last week on the lack of governmental response to the numerous reviews of national security legislation conducted in the past few years. My view—first aired here (PDF, p. …
In what was described as a ‘fairly major breakdown’ in border security, a convicted terrorist named Khaled Sharrouf recently left Australia without authorities noticing. He’s suspected to be in Syria, where several Australians have joined …
In addition the making a submission on defence efficiency to the National Commission of Audit, ASPI also provided on a paper on national security priorities. This paper addresses the dynamics behind Australia’s national security debate, …
In his book Against All Enemies, Richard Clarke relates an incident when in 1993 he was attempting to persuade President Clinton to ‘snatch’ a terrorist (a practice nowadays known better by its more formal tag …
The Australian Crime Commission has warned that a significant amount of Australia’s organised crime problem is generated overseas. Foreign countries are often the sources of drugs and guns, and may provide the bases where criminal …
Hamish Hansford’s response to my recent post adds to the explanation of the relationship between organised crime and security—his list of effects is a reminder that crime affects security in a number of ways. I’d …
New governments always rethink the machinery of state. The main aim is to make better decisions than the last lot—if only principally to retain government at the next election! So, in the field of national …
