Papua New Guinea needs to prepare for the threat posed by cheap, commercial drones. Given Australia’s defence cooperation with PNG – formalised into an alliance by the Pukpuk treaty – and the two countries’ proximity, this …
They were assembled in Australia but not really made in Australia. Lockheed Martin GMLRS missiles lately test-fired in Australia were the first delivered from an Australian factory, and the 13 April announcement of the shots …
In July 1940, just days after the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania, Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov warned the Lithuanian deputy prime minister that ‘in the future, small nations will have to disappear.’ The Baltic states …
A dimming outlook for US defence exports in Europe – outlined by Bill Sweetman in a 24 March Strategist article – should raise concerns for the viability of the Trump administration’s defence export strategy. That …
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 …
Strategic geography creates opportunity. It does not create industry. Northern Australia now faces a simple test: can the Northern Territory turn its position at the edge of the Indo-Pacific into real industrial capability? The Northern …
Australia’s plan for sustaining its armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs) far from their basing is the equivalent of Ukraine sending its tanks to Paris for repair and overhaul. This is illogical and unacceptable. As part of …
Governments, universities and individual academics should urgently revisit export-control compliance in academia. Western governments are tightening export controls to safeguard military and industrial advantages amid rising geostrategic uncertainty. Western universities are thus increasingly forced to reconcile …
India and Australia need to start cooperating in detecting, monitoring and understanding what’s going on underwater. As submarines, especially small, uncrewed ones, proliferate in the Indian Ocean and adjacent waters, neither country should regard itself …
A comprehensive defence treaty between Japan and Australia is overdue. The 50th anniversary of the two countries’ Basic Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, to be marked this year, should provide the occasion for signing an …
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 …
Australia and its partners need to monitor the developments in China’s engagement with Timor-Leste carefully. Canberra should also, ideally, implement proactive initiatives to strengthen its own relationship with Dili. Given Chinese interest in controlling choke …
Japan is going full steam in expanding its military use of uncrewed autonomous platforms and countering China’s. One policy has got this effort underway, and three more due this year will give a better idea …
Rising geopolitical uncertainty and complexity demand new approaches to strategic planning, risk management and scenario planning. Traditional methods are becoming less useful for government agencies, organisations and businesses as trends become less reliable indicators of disruptive …
Commentators often inaccurately describe the frameworks governing US military presence in Australia. Debate frequently centres on sovereignty, with claims that deeper US access or infrastructure investment risks eroding Australian control. That framing overlooks the structured …
The war in Iran has just entered its second month. Supreme leader Ali Khamenei is dead, global fuel trade has stalled and the United States’ relationship with its allies is at a low. In this …
Just reports of mines are often sufficient to disrupt maritime traffic. Even if ship owners, crews and insurers weren’t aware of the missile threat in the Strait of Hormuz, news reporting of sea mines in …
Australians are watching fuel prices and wondering how bad this could get. Donald Trump’s comments on Iran and the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday delivered a blunt message: Don’t assume the United States will carry …
For centuries, the Arctic was considered the exclusive domain of polar bears, exotic marine life and the occasional intrepid explorer. However, as climate change has thawed the polar ice, it has also opened up new …