Planet A
Severe drought is affecting large areas of South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia, with some regions receiving near-record low levels of rainfall. Agricultural producers are incurring substantial financial costs to purchase feed or are having to sell livestock to remain viable. At the same time, unprecedented flooding in New South Wales last month has prompted calls for policy reform from scientists and policymakers to address escalating impacts of extreme weather.
Recent ANU research suggests that Australia is projected to face longer and more severe droughts. In early March 2025, as part of its Feeding Australia strategy, the Albanese government pledged $3.5 million to enable farmers and other supply chain stakeholders to tackle key challenges affecting the national food system.
Democracy watch
A Reuters special report uncovered a sweeping Chinese influence campaign targeting Palau, a small Pacific island nation vital to US military strategy in the Indo-Pacific. Individuals with ties to the Chinese government have allegedly made political donations to Palauan leaders, leased land overlooking sensitive US military sites and facilitated meetings between Palauan politicians and Chinese officials, including some linked to Beijing’s United Front Work Department. At the same time, Palau has seen a sharp rise in organised crime reportedly linked to Chinese syndicates, including drug trafficking, online gambling, money laundering, and violent incidents such as kidnappings and killings. Palau, alongside Marshall Islands and Tuvalu, is under pressure as China seeks to exclude Taiwan from September’s Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Solomon Islands.
Info ops
On 5 June, Chinese authorities in Guangzhou issued bounties for more than 20 people allegedly linked to Taiwan’s government, accusing them of orchestrating cyberattacks on critical sectors such as defence, aerospace, energy and government agencies. Beijing claims these actions are part of a broader campaign of cyber and cognitive warfare, led by what it calls ‘Taiwan’s information, communication and digital army’, in collaboration with US intelligence agencies.
Taiwan’s defence ministry has strongly denied the allegations. A senior Taiwanese security official said they were fabricated and accused Beijing of attempting to divert global attention from its own cyber operations which have, for example, been condemned in statements from the European Union, the US and the Czech Republic.
The escalation comes amid China’s increased military assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific, with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warning that an attempt to seize Taiwan could be imminent.
Follow the money
The Queensland government has committed to spending a record $2.4 billion this year on transmission lines connecting the state’s North West Minerals Province to the national electricity grid. The project, scheduled for completion in 2031, is expected to significantly reduce energy costs for mining firms around Mount Isa, which currently pay up to double the national rate.
In a region historically focused on copper and zinc, there are now increasing projects for cobalt and vanadium—essential inputs for batteries and electric vehicles, as well as high-performance alloys, stealth technologies, jet engines, armoured vehicles and electronics across the defence sector. Trials are underway to recover some of the estimated 10,000 tonnes of cobalt found in Mount Isa’s mining waste each year. It’s hoped that this could make Queensland a global leader, reducing Australian and allied reliance on predominantly Chinese-controlled cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Terror byte
Islamic preacher Wissam Haddad faced a Sydney court hearing on 11 June, after a case was brought against him by the Executive Council of Australian Jewry. The council alleged that five speeches made by Haddad in November 2023 at the Al Madina Dawah Centre in Bankstown contained antisemitic remarks, breaching the Racial Discrimination Act. The council is seeking an injunction to prevent Haddad from engaging in similar activities.
While Haddad has never been charged with a terrorism-related offence, his position of influence as a radical preacher with close ties to Islamic State sympathisers in Sydney—such as fighter Khaled Sharrouf, believed dead in Syria since 2017—has been attested. In a review of convicted terrorist leader Abdul Nacer Benbrika’s 2023 release, the Australian Federal Police cited contact with Haddad as evidence that Benbrika continued to pose a security threat. Benbrika is now organising funding for Haddad’s legal defence.