Indonesia’s failing drive for food self-sufficiency, which began under the government of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, is costing domestic consumers tens of billions of dollars and has led to the highest rice prices in the Southeast …
In January 1911, the Australian government announced its intention to form a flying corps to support the Army. Over the next few years men were recruited, an airbase established at Point Cook near Melbourne, and …
Australia is to end a 75-year history of shortwave broadcasting to Papua New Guinea and the South Pacific. On December 6, 2016, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation announced that, it will end its shortwave transmission service …
For one last time in this cataclysmic year, welcome back to ASPI suggests. ‘Tis the season for lists, so here are a few good ‘uns that caught our eye this week. First, a dose of …
I had the good fortune to be in Perth last week as a speaker at the WA Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Defence Conference. The ‘take home’ messages of my presentation were: the government has …
US allies around the globe have begun to contemplate a future in which America plays a more restrained role. Here in Australia, we’re acutely conscious of the recent surge of interest in the future of …
Welcome to The Strategist Six, a feature that provides a glimpse into the thinking of prominent academics, government officials, military officers, reporters and interesting individuals from around the world. 1. Now that China is overtly …
The Beat Venezuela’s “worthless” 100-bolivar note Venezuela’s Present Nicolas Maduro has announced that the 100-bolivar note will be taken out of circulation by 15 December, and replaced with new coins and bills ranging from 500 to …
Election integrity, which includes protection from tactics and techniques that might spread panic and propaganda, or cyber intrusions that might influence the outcome of national election cycles, should be seen as a core security challenge. …
The Australian government’s linear, one dimensional strategic thinking is again on open and disturbing display. It simply appears to consist of ‘three cheers for the hegemon’! Prime Minister Turnbull recently welcomed the prospect of growing …
We tend to think of ‘slavery’ as an archaic term. But the fact stands that slavery is still a significant issue in the contemporary world; both in the Asia–Pacific and more locally here in Australia. …
For the final two cyber wraps of 2016, ICPC will review some of the biggest cyber stories to make headlines over the last twelve months so that we can all laugh, cry and reflect on …
The government’s decision to pursue multi-decade domestic ship and submarine building programs sits oddly with decades of economic reform. Successive governments have striven to maintain competition in the Australian economy, and for good reason. …
While lengthy counterinsurgency campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan have provided our military with valuable operational experience, they haven’t necessarily prepared us for the next conflict. On the other hand, the Russo-Ukraine War provides some valuable …
Sea State One of the Su-33 Flanker-D aircraft onboard the Admiral Kuznetsov—Russia’s aircraft carrier in the Eastern Mediterranean—crashed last week. The accident was the second one in a month and occurred after one of the …
While Australia, like the rest of the world, has been trying to assess the implications of the election of Donald J. Trump, we’ve missed some other events or anniversaries that would normally have drawn our …
The political debate over the future of New Caledonia is heating up. In preparation for the 2018 referendum on independence, all parties in the territory are engaged in sensitive negotiations. The state is demonstrating its …
As a number of commentators have observed, the phone call between Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen and US president-elect Donald Trump has set a cat among the pigeons. It has breached a practice in place since 1979 …
Australia’s next submarines will be the most sophisticated naval vessels under construction in the world and they will be built here in Australia with Australian workers using Australian expertise and Australian steel. The strong desire …
France’s defence- and security-related activities in the Asia–Pacific are often underestimated, sometimes distorted or simply ignored. The natural focus on the role of major powers in the region—the US, China, India and Japan—causes the …