In opting to acquire nuclear-powered submarines as a part of the AUKUS deal with the United States and the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has committed Australia to a price tag of about $368 …
How a nation prepares for war is nearly as important as how it wages war. It is in peacetime that a military identifies and acquires the weapons with which it will fight, determines their optimal …
Now that the initial euphoria over the announcement of the AUKUS agreement and Australia’s decision to acquire nuclear submarines has passed, it’s time to unpack some of the deeper meaning. The mandated 18 months of …
The force that Australia’s defence organisation is building will be the most powerful and capable that the nation has ever fielded. The Australian Defence Force’s massive build-up will include the acquisition of a host of …
Australia’s national security community is once again in the midst of a debate on whether or not Australia should acquire nuclear weapons. This latest round was initiated by the publication of Hugh White’s new book, …
There’s broad agreement among defence thinkers and academics that the international security environment is on the cusp of significant change. Dominating the commentary are analyses of the consequences of a risen China, a resurgent Russia …
The world is on the cusp of a new industrial age—the fourth. As with previous industrial ages, those who embrace it first stand to become the dominant powers of the future and will seize the …
I started to read Andrew Harrison’s recent Strategist post, ‘“Capability” saves lives’, with some interest, but that soon changed to disappointment as the narrowness of his definition of capability became clear. Like most military professionals …
On 27 March 1918, near Franvillers, Major General John Monash stood on the heights overlooking the Somme Valley. He was alone, except for a single staff officer. In the distance he could see the German …
Again I find myself replying to The Strategist more with comfortable agreement than bad-tempered rebuttal and I appreciate Michael Clifford’s recent observations on my paper, Forging Australian Land Power: A Primer. Clifford asserts that Australia’s …
In an author’s response to a critique of one’s work, perhaps it might seem unusual to start by agreeing with the criticiser! In his review of my monograph Forging Australian Land Power: A Primer, Dr …
There is little to argue with in Beyond 2017: The Australian Defence Force and Amphibious Warfare by Ken Gleiman and Peter J Dean. It’s soundly thought out, well written, and concludes with a number of …