While the conflict in Ukraine is mostly concentrated in the east along the country’s border with Russia, the borders of NATO members to Ukraine’s north and west are increasingly being tested. Mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner …
Understanding what’s happening in the maritime domain, known as maritime domain awareness or MDA, is an essential element for any country that wishes to govern its maritime zones. But in the Indo-Pacific, many countries struggle …
The political and strategic profile of the Middle East is changing as China asserts itself as a major challenger to US unipolar domination and regional states, especially Saudia Arabia, seek more independence in shaping their …
The world has forgotten about Zimbabwe. Few outsiders know, or would care, that the country is due to hold elections this month. And that’s among those who could point to it on a map. For …
Australians live in complex and uncertain times. This strategic situation demands that governments leverage whole-of-nation capability, engage the wider community about national preparedness, and speak with, not at, stakeholders. Communities in Australia and its region …
As I noted on the recent 20th anniversary, the Iraq war, and more particularly the intelligence failure in relation to Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, initiated an inquiry the following year, conducted for the Australian …
Last week, Lloyd Austin became the first US defence secretary to visit Papua New Guinea, en route to the AUSMIN conclave in Brisbane. Austin was the latest in a long line of VIP visitors to …
The joint statement issued after Saturday’s AUSMIN meeting in Brisbane declared enhanced space cooperation as a new force posture initiative for the United States and Australia in ‘this critical operational domain’. The two governments also …
In March 1985, the Wall Street Journal showered India’s new prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, with its highest praise. In an editorial titled ‘Rajiv Reagan’, the newspaper compared the 40-year-old Gandhi to ‘another famous tax cutter …
The lead-up to Saturday’s meeting between Australia’s defence and foreign affairs ministers and their US counterparts was low key, as were the expectations. But optics and substance are not always perfectly matched with AUSMIN meetings, …
Last month, Canada suddenly announced that it was freezing all ties with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, a multilateral lender created by China as an alternative to the World Bank. According to Canada’s finance minister, …
Recent climate negotiations have been heated, to say the least. Beyond the usual recriminations over financing, the choice of Sultan Al Jaber—chief executive of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company—as the president of the upcoming United …
A key part of the government’s response to the defence strategic review (DSR) was the establishment of an independent analysis team to examine the Royal Australian Navy’s surface combatant fleet and to report back to …
In September 2021, the Chinese Communist Party attempted to use the establishment of the AUKUS pact and Australia’s plan for nuclear-powered submarines to undermine the strong ties between Pacific island countries and the three AUKUS …
Myanmar moves from military coup to a civil war that is now a revolution. The junta’s bungled effort to turn the clock back by seizing power in February 2021 has been a bloody fiasco. The …
Commemorations in South Korea yesterday, and elsewhere around the world, marked the 70th anniversary of the signing of the Korean War armistice at Panmunjom on 27 July 1953. Today, amid the war in Ukraine and …
Great opportunities await the Australian critical minerals industry, according to the Productivity Commission, but it says they are unlikely to include manufacture of end products such as batteries. The commission’s critique of the emerging industry …
Planet A A new report has concluded that the record-high temperatures currently affecting North America and parts of Europe would not have occurred without climate change. The analysis by World Weather Attribution found that Europe’s heatwave …
You may not be interested in artificial intelligence, but it is interested in you. Today, you might have used AI to find the quickest route to a meeting through peak-hour traffic and, while you used …
In a world where two countries can disagree but not come to blows, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore this year, a central concept is ‘the word of the moment: “guardrails”’. …