At ASPI’s recent State of the Region Masterclass (PDF) I detailed some “alternate futures” for the Trump administration. In truth no-one, not even Trump himself, can be sure how his presidency will evolve. The future …
The great Russian writer, Vladimir Nabokov, probably described VI Lenin best, when he observed that the Bolshevik leader’s ideology was like a pail of milk of human kindness, with a dead rat at the bottom. …
In a recent Strategist post, we discussed the pros and cons of different sized unmanned maritime aerial systems. We came down on the side of larger systems. Geoff Slocombe then took issue with our position, …
There is a growing consensus that the first genuine crisis of Donald Trump’s presidency could involve North Korea and, more specifically, its ability to place a nuclear warhead on one or more ballistic missiles possessing …
The Foreign Policy White Paper to be produced this year must place big bets in Asia. The multi-purpose bets must imagine expanded interests and seek insurance against a protectionist US president who’s sceptical of alliances. In our …
Ahoy, loyal readers. The Trump–Russia story continues to roll on, or does it? A few voices have piped up in the last week or so to warn Trump’s critics/the media about the difference between finding …
The recent establishment by the Attorney-General and the Treasurer of a Critical Infrastructure Centre (CIC) follows strong media interest in the issue of foreign direct investment in Australian infrastructure, including the leasing of part of …
Back in 1967, the Australian National University held a conference on the theme, India, Japan, Australia: Partners in Asia? It was an interesting time to host such a gathering. That year witnessed a series of …
We were in Washington recently for the latest annual track-2 ‘Quad Plus’ dialogue. The meeting brings together participants from think tanks in Australia, India, Japan and the United States, as well as invited “plus” nations—this …
The Beat Targeting motorcycle outlaws Anti-bikie detectives in the Echo Taskforce arrested 21 people affiliated with the Comancheros motorcycle gang in Melbourne this week, who’ve been connected with previous explosions, shootings and fires. Police seized …
This article is part of a series on ‘Women, Peace and Security’ that The Strategist is publishing in recognition of International Women’s Day 2017. When Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, and her Labor counterpart, Penny Wong, visited Samoa, …
A series of episodes in recent years—including Russia’s cyber interventions to skew the United States’ 2016 presidential election toward Donald Trump, the anonymous cyber-attacks that disrupted Ukraine’s electricity system in 2015, and the ‘Stuxnet’ virus …
The advent of a new administration in Washington, one with the declared intention to improve relations with Moscow, presents an opportunity for a fresh approach to resolve the dire problem of Syria. Currently a grim …
It’s now been a week since WikiLeaks released a cache of documents exposing the CIA’s cyber espionage tools and techniques. The discussion has this week turned to how the documents got into WikiLeaks’ hands. The …
This month the European Union will celebrate the 60th anniversary of its founding treaty, the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community. There certainly is much to celebrate. After centuries of war, upheaval, …
In Senate Estimates recently, DFAT’s Secretary Frances Adamson introduced a discussion of the new foreign policy white paper with the statement, ‘We do this in a complex international environment where the scale and pace of …
This article is part of a series on ‘Women, Peace and Security’ that The Strategist is publishing in recognition of International Women’s Day 2017. When delivering a speech in advance of becoming the UN’s new Secretary-General, António Guterres …
The Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Treaties (pictured above at ASC in Adelaide) is holding a public hearing today to consider the Framework Agreement between the Government of Australia and the Government of the French …
Sea State For an (alarming) maritime security synopsis, check out this Navy Times article which examines today’s five most dangerous at-sea deployments. In reverse order, they are: South China Sea, Black Sea, Persian Gulf, Sea …
Everyone agrees that we should, whenever possible, buy military equipment based closely on existing designs rather than new ones. Doing so results in lower costs, lower risks and quicker delivery. So why aren’t we going …