In a startling warning during his trip to Canberra this week, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said global security would be threatened if a peace deal in Ukraine was viewed as mission accomplished. Ukraine’s supporters, …
The European Union has institutional capacity, regulatory power and operational experience that can support Australian priorities in the Indo-Pacific. Canberra should not miss the chance to work more closely with it. Globalisation, networked infrastructure and …
Allied governments want resilient critical mineral supply chains. Investors want contracted revenue. Capital does not finance separation plants and magnet facilities based on strategic aspiration; it finances credible, long-term demand. Policy still leans too heavily …
One factor should dominate global strategic policymaking today: that the Strait of Hormuz will re-open only with the consent of the Iranian government. No amount of US naval power can either force passage or safeguard …
The widening Iran war is not just another Middle Eastern crisis. For Pakistan, it represents a strategic shock with immediate economic, security and political consequences. Situated at the crossroads of the Middle East and South …
Security concerns drove the Australian government’s 2025 decision to bring Darwin Port, currently leased to Chinese company Landbridge, back into the control of Australian or trusted partners. So it should now be backed by the …
Expansion of Australia’s fleet of Ocius Bluebottle uncrewed boats is an important step, but it must not be the last in creating a larger and more powerful navy that mixes such systems with conventional warships. …
We should welcome the government’s decision to reform Defence’s approach to capability development and defence delivery. This will give a much-overdue opportunity to increase the focus on the future. While important lessons can be learned …
The main mechanism by which Defence is held accountable to the public for management of its A$20-billion-per-year capability acquisition program has ended. In a press release on 6 March, the Parliamentary Joint Committee of Public …
Australia is experiencing a once-in-a-generation energy build-out. Offshore wind and distributed energy systems are being deployed at speed, reshaping how electricity is generated, coordinated and controlled. The urgency—driven by decarbonisation, reliability and resilience—is exposing a …
In the second week of the escalating conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, Australia on 10 March announced a limited contribution to help under-attack Gulf states detect and shoot down Iranian missiles and …
Thank you for the invitation to appear today in relation to the Royal Commissions Legislation Amendment (Protections for Providing Information) Bill. I register my strong support for the establishment of the royal commission to inquire …
The Iran War, more than four years of Russia’s war on Ukraine and tensions in the Indo-Pacific have prompted most democratic nations to reset defence strategies and budgets. The strategic rationale is just as relevant …
NATO’s decision to approve configured iPhones and iPads for handling classified information up to NATO restricted level—without requiring special software or settings—highlights a shift in how governments approach secure mobility. The significance lies not in …
As Operation Epic Fury enters its second week, it is manifestly obvious that Donald Trump’s ‘Arsenal of Democracy’ is running low. The United States, Iran and Israel appear to be locked in a race to …
Australia needs an integrated approach that strengthens cyber and space capabilities and builds a resilient, dispersed posture in the north. This would ensure that in any future scenario the first operational leap projects outward. Northern …
Artificial intelligence is transforming economic cyber-espionage, but the protection of commercially valuable assets has not kept up. Governments and industry cannot rely on pre-AI defences to confront a more scalable, covert and structurally different threat. …
After the US-Israeli attack on Iran began, the Chinese air force stopped flying around Taiwan—and the reason isn’t at all clear. Observers have offered various possibilities, but none seems convincing. The inactivity started the morning …
When Iranian drones struck hyperscale cloud data-centre facilities in the United Arab Emirates and damaged infrastructure near Bahrain on 1 March, they did not just target military bases. They also targeted server farms. That distinction …
A debate over Chinese-made electric buses has arrived in Australia with familiar speed. Talk of potential kill switches has prompted calls to rip and replace foreign vehicles and turn to domestic supply. But the concerns …