As regular folks in Canberra were closing down for the summer break, Graeme Dobell was on a writing roll for The Strategist. He questioned the still freshly minted Prime Minister’s attachment to values in Australia’s …
While Tony Abbot calls John Howard his mentor, it’s worth considering the impact on the Abbott universe of another political warrior whose profile was always instantly recognisable. The warrior’s hair was perfect as a helmet, …
Welcome back to our weekly round-up of new reports and updates in the defence and security realm. The Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict released a new report yesterday on Indonesians and the Syrian Conflict …
There’s been a long-running debate on The Strategist about whether Australia should be content with middle-power status. It’s a term that many Australians think downplays their country’s strategic importance, especially its growing centrality to the …
The past year has seen extensive media coverage of Australians fighting with Syrian jihadist groups. Less noticed, however, has been the case of Indonesians fighting overseas. Indonesian Islamist organisations have been closely monitoring the Syrian …
It’s been a few months now since the September 2013 attacks on Westgate Mall in Nairobi and the global media has been largely silent on al-Shabaab, save for reports of a recent bomb attack in …
Malcolm Davis’s recent post considered unmanned air vehicles (UAV) and falling tactical fighter fleet numbers. The issues raised are worth exploring further as they directly relate to the ADF’s future air combat capability. Simply put, …
This last week saw world leaders gathering in Davos in the Swiss Alps for the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting. With the WEF releasing its Risk and Responsibility in a Hyperconnected World and its Global …
Over the next couple of days, Australian and French think tank, industry and government officials will participate in the ASPI Australia–France Defence and Industry Dialogue. Peter Jennings will be along later to talk about some …
Ben Schreer wrote earlier today about the strategic implications of hypersonic weapons. Now we’ll have a look at some of the military technology implications. It’s worth noting that there are some difficult problems to be …
The defence press is reporting that on 9 January, China conducted the first test of a new hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), launched atop of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The vehicle can reportedly glide and …
Many of you will head back tomorrow from holidays and into lecture halls and conference rooms after this Australia Day holiday weekend. In preparation, please take a moment to arm yourself some simple tools to …
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the strategy cult classic film by Stanley Kubrick, ‘Dr Strangelove or: how I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb’. Over at The New Yorker, Eric Schlosser looks …
International aid for the Philippines after last November’s devastating typhoon has had some security consequences. Changes have occurred in the Philippines’ relations with the United States, with Japan, with China, with Hong Kong and with …
Just before Christmas, the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) put out an interesting report Process over platforms: a paradigm shift in acquisition through advanced manufacturing (PDF) by Aaron Martin and (expat Australian) Ben …
As the mood of crisis that surrounded the Indonesia–Australia spying scandal recedes into the past, debate continues about what lessons Australia should learn from the affair. While the episode certainly provides instruction on how we …
Netizens are in an uproar as a DC Federal Court has come down against the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) net neutrality rules. Verizon, the lead plaintiff in the case, petitioned for its right to ‘manage’ …
The 2014 Madeleine Award for the use of symbol, stunt, prop, gesture or jest in international affairs goes to Margaret Thatcher. Some winners just stand up and demand the prize through sheer force of personality …
Australia has a vital interest in preventing its region, defined as the Indo-Pacific in the 2013 Defence White Paper, from becoming an arena of great power rivalry. This includes between India and China. Developing a …
The last day of 2013 marked more than the close of the year: it signalled the end of one of the most important global sources of publicly-accessible intelligence. Through a low-key notice, the United States …