After Chief Executive Carrie Lam cancelled the Hong Kong Legislative Council election scheduled for September 2020, Beijing’s National People’s Congress decreed that all council members would stay in their posts for ‘no less than one …
The South China Morning Post has been keeping a running tally of the incidents in Australia’s deteriorating trade relationship with China this year, starting with a set of events that was entirely ignored by the Australian media. …
The United States is in the midst of a major shift in focus to the Indo-Pacific as it competes with China for global influence. This contest will affect key US priorities and require comprehensive policy engagement …
The government announced its modern manufacturing initiative (MMI) on 1 October as the centrepiece of its strategy to help Australian manufacturers ‘scale up, improve competitiveness and build more resilient supply chains’. The MMI will support …
A major priority of whoever wins the US presidential election will be to set or reset relations with Iran. Whichever way it goes, the result will have huge implications for regional security. For both Donald …
The fall of the Weimar Republic and the seizure of power by the Nazis in 1933 is usually best told by the creative. After all, Weimar is remembered not only for its economic and political …
The images were touching. In early October, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas visited the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin with his Israeli and Emirati counterparts. How better to celebrate the recent normalisation of relations between Israel …
Australia’s overseas spies shelter in the most silent spaces of the spook universe. The 68-year-old ethos of the spies of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service is never to speak publicly, just as they aim never …
The international community urgently needs new tools, ideas and initiatives to meet the common threats and challenges faced by the United Nations’ 193 member countries. The world body’s 75th anniversary, marked on United Nations Day …
‘When small men begin to cast big shadows’, wrote the Chinese intellectual Lin Yutang, ‘it means the sun is about to set.’ It is a dictum that, like many, functions neatly in reverse. When small …
An Australian ministerial visit to Brunei Darussalam normally triggers little strategic interest. But there may be more than meets the eye to Defence Minister Linda Reynolds’s meeting this week with Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, sandwiched in …
In a major hostage exchange in Mali earlier this month, nearly 200 jihadists held by the Mali government were swapped for a French woman, two Italians and a kidnapped Malian politician. The exchange didn’t include …
With the presidential election only 10 days away, what US nuclear strategy might be under a Joe Biden administration and what that might imply for US extended nuclear deterrence should be key issues of concern …
Right-wing extremists in Australia are ‘hiding in plain sight’, was the assessment Shadow Home Affairs Minister Kristina Keneally gave at a recent ASPI counterterrorism dialogue. Joining Keneally last month to discuss current and emerging threats …
We’ve just lost one of Australia’s and the region’s finest maritime and strategic thinkers and leaders. Sam Bateman died this week aged 82. Sam seemingly had the sea in his soul. He was a true giant …
Established in 2012, the 17+1 initiative was Beijing’s flagship effort to promote China’s economic relations with the nations of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It’s largely perceived as an extension of China’s Belt and Road …
Whether we are heading for a future of cooperation or of increasing confrontation in the Arctic remains to be seen. But it’s already clear that the region will command far more attention than it has …
The big defence news in Australia this year was in the 2020 defence strategic update released on 1 July. The update and its accompanying force structure plan ended speculation about the defence budget and reaffirmed the …
The distant conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh has already provided a sharp lesson on how future battles might be fought. The war has been most visibly characterised by ‘kill …
Sea state Australia has been invited to join the Malabar naval exercise with America, India and Japan. This year will be the first since 2007 that Australia has participated in the drills, having previously withdrawn …