ASPI suggests
Posted By Harry White and Natalie Sambhi on March 4, 2013 @ 13:00
[1]
Welcome back for our weekly round-up of news, reports and events in the defence, NatSec and strategy world.
It’s one minute past midnight, as the sequester—USD$1.2 trillion of cuts across the US federal budget over the next decade, including defence—has gone into effect. Expect more bickering to follow, writes [2] The Economist.
For readers interested in strategy, Adam Elkus has a short and sweet review [3] of a new edited volume by John Andreas Olsen and Colin Gray called The Practice of Strategy: from Alexander the Great to the present [4] which asks the fundamental question, is there unity to all strategic experience?
There’s cautious optimism from Trita Parsi in this piece [5] on recent negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program; the meeting in Almaty saw the paradigm of the talks shift from perpetual escalation to an exchange of concessions and incentives.
On a related note, why eliminate nuclear weapons? James E. Doyle has a new Survival article available free for download here [6].
As part of a Yearbook pre-launch series, SIPRI has recently announced that arms sales of the top 100 companies have decreased in 2011 [7]. And here’s a list [8] of the top 100 arms-producing companies, excluding China.
Updated: Two of our ASEAN neighbours, Malaysia and the Philippines have been drawn into resolving skirmishes that have resulted in the deaths of 14 Filipinos and six Malaysian police officers [9]. Here’s a quick summary: according to media reports [10], the violence was sparked when dozens of followers from the Sulu sultanate in the Philippines sailed to Borneo 9 February to claim the Malaysian territory Sabah [11] on the grounds of ancestral rights. Although leaders [12] of both countries have called for an end to hostilities, the stand-off continues. For more detail, Reuters has looked at oil interests of major firms in Sabah [13], Former Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos has provided his analysis [14] and Fairfax’s Lindsay Murdoch has examined the ramifications for Malaysia’s elections [15] if violence continues.
If you’re researching the conflicts in Iraq or Afghanistan, RAND has a new report that measures US troops deployments [16] in terms of service and length.
Events
Canberra readers, register now for ANU’s 2013 Myanmar/Burma Update Conference [17], Friday 15 to Saturday 15 March. It features panels addressing democratisation, political and economic issues, ethnic conflict, and the role of the security forces, and for the first time, a Burmese-language session.
Professor Tessa Morris-Suzuki will be speaking about Japan’s second Abe government and its implications for the Asia–Pacific region [18]. Hosted by AIIA ACT, it’s on Wednesday 13 March at 5.30pm.
If you’re interested in a career in national security, defence or intelligence, head down to the Kokoda Foundation National Security Careers Night on Thursday 14 March from 5.15pm, register here [19].
For Sydney-siders, Paul Barratt AO and Dr Sue Wareham OAM will be addressing the question, why did we go to war in Iraq? [20] Hosted by the AIIA NSW, it’s on Tuesday 12 March at 6pm.
Image courtesy of Flickr user The White House [21].
Article printed from The Strategist: https://aspistrategist.ru
URL to article: /aspi-suggests-20/
URLs in this post:
[1] Image: https://aspistrategist.ru/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/8476839488_c824a5ec33_z1.jpg
[2] writes: http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2013/03/sequester
[3] short and sweet review: http://rethinkingsecurity.tumblr.com/post/44313901282/capsule-review-the-practice-of-strategy
[4] The Practice of Strategy: from Alexander the Great to the present: http://www.amazon.com/Practice-Strategy-Alexander-Great-Present/dp/0199608636
[5] this piece: http://thediplomat.com/2013/03/01/the-ball-is-in-irans-court/
[6] here: http://www.iiss.org/publications/survival/survival-2013/year-2013-issue-1/why-eliminate-nuclear-weapons/
[7] top 100 companies have decreased in 2011: http://www.sipri.org/media/pressreleases/2013/AP_PR
[8] list: http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/production/Top100
[9] six Malaysian police officers: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/world/asia/04iht-malaysia04.html
[10] media reports: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2013-03-02/malaysian-police-killed-in-latest-clash-with-filipino-gunmen/1095836
[11] to claim the Malaysian territory Sabah: http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2013/02/16/909935/news-analysis-standoff-sabah-could-derail-peace-process-mindanao
[12] leaders: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/03/world/asia/aquino-calls-for-surrender-of-filipino-group-in-malaysia.html?_r=0
[13] oil interests of major firms in Sabah: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/03/us-malaysia-poltiics-idUSBRE92202A20130303
[14] provided his analysis: http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/396189/philippines-sulu-malaysia-sabah-asean-first-of-two-parts#.UTPy76Knr60
[15] examined the ramifications for Malaysia’s elections: http://www.smh.com.au/world/malaysian-opposition-fears-territorial-dispute-will-delay-poll-20130303-2fex0.html
[16] new report that measures US troops deployments: http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR145.html#key-findings
[17] ANU’s 2013 Myanmar/Burma Update Conference: http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/asiapacific-region/myanmarburma-update/conference-details-2013
[18] Japan’s second Abe government and its implications for the Asia–Pacific region: http://www.aiia.asn.au/act-events/event/635-tipping-the-balance-the-second-abe-government-japan-and-the-asia-pacific-region
[19] here: http://kokodafoundation.org/Bookings?eventId=625618&EventViewMode=EventDetails
[20] why did we go to war in Iraq?: http://www.aiia.asn.au/nsw-events/event/642-why-did-we-go-to-war-in-iraq
[21] The White House: http://www.flickr.com/photos/whitehouse/8476839488/in/photostream
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