On 21 August, the Indonesian House of Representatives endorsed the candidacy of General Moeldoko, Indonesia’s Army Chief, moving him a step closer to becoming commander TNI. With defence ties a key pillar of the Australia–Indonesia …
The Asia Essentials express Australia’s experiences during more than two decades of slow institutional construction in Asia since the end of the Cold War. The emerging weak system is an expression of Asian habits of …
Defence and security have yet to feature in this election. But it should. As ASPI’s Davies and Thomson recently pointed out, the ADF is in a dire position, particularly in relation to the sustainment of …
Australia’s reaction to the conduct of the Zimbabwean election (31 July), in which President Mugabe was victorious, reportedly gaining 61% of the vote, was resolute. On 4 August, Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr said: Australia has been …
In one of my earlier pieces I mentioned the cost growth experienced by the Apollo program. It’s worth digging a little deeper into that story. In a wonderful paper on cost estimation (yes, I need …
Benjamin Schreer offers some important qualifications to Radford’s initial remarks about the relevance of Japan’s new carrier, Izumo, both for the JMSDF and in relation to naval developments and ramifications for naval politics in Northeast …
Cambodia’s recent suspension or ‘postponement’ of military exercises with the United States has in some ways come as a surprise and in another sense isn’t surprising at all. For several years Cambodia has been ‘playing …
ASPI recently convened a conference on Maritime Confidence Building Measures in the South China Sea. It was attended by 62 participants from 16 countries and considered maritime confidence building measures of a military and non-military …
On 29 August, ASPI will host ‘the Great Defence Debate’ in Canberra between Mike Kelly, the Minister for Defence Materiel—who has been named by Kevin Rudd as Defence Minister should Labor be re-elected—and the Opposition …
A new order’s being born in Asia and the power and number of the players mean it’ll be a contested order. The potential for clash and instability is high. The 10 Asia Essentials of my …
Christopher Painter, the US State Department’s Coordinator for Cyber Issues, conducted an insightful interview last week on cyber diplomacy, norms and whole-of-government approaches to cybersecurity. Painter, who is the lead negotiator on the US – …
David Connery’s recent post prompts us to understand serious and organised crime as a national security issue. This is often difficult to comprehend because organised crime is like an iceberg: the majority of it is …
China’s top leaders descended quietly upon the seaside resort of Beidaihe in early August for its customary summer retreat. This year, in contrast to the last party conclave, may have been less political horse trading …
The term ‘Indo-Pacific’ is gaining currency. It appeared in this year’s Defence White Paper as an alternative to ‘Asia–Pacific’, and although the formulation varies slightly, it has been picked up by both sides of Australian …
Crispin Rovere and Kalman Robertson have responded to my earlier comments on their ‘low-yield nuclear weapon treaty’ proposal, but I’m not convinced by their argument. They claim that low-yield weapons ‘are a unique class of …
Back in June, I was asked to speak at a workshop in Ottawa on defence reform, alongside presenters from the United States and United Kingdom. It was a great opportunity to catch up on what’s …
Neither Australia nor New Zealand wants to have to choose between the United States and China in the possible option that Hugh White has envisaged so starkly. But if push comes to shove, it can’t …
Ten Essentials are shaping Asia’s success and the chance of future conflict. The Essentials drive diplomacy and strategy and are at the core of what’s a new system. They fall under three main headings; great …
Recent commentary, including by Phil Radford here on The Strategist, has argued that Japan’s new Izumo (DDH22) ‘flat top destroyer’ is in fact the Maritime Self-Defense Force’s (MSDF) first, ‘mid-sized aircraft carrier’ since the Second …
Mixed defence news for India this week: the county’s first indigenously built nuclear-powered submarine was activated days before an incident in which the kilo-class submarine INS Sindhurakshak exploded. Eighteen Indian sailors are feared dead. The Economist …