Part of a leader’s magic is to spin a few words into political gold, capturing the moment and proclaiming the future. Think Franklin D. Roosevelt’s ‘new deal’, Winston Churchill’s ‘iron curtain’, or Ben Chifley’s ‘light …
Articles by: "Graeme Dobell"
‘We would be deaf and blind without Pine Gap.’ — Kim Beazley Now in its sixth decade of operation, the Pine Gap facility, outside Alice Springs, is a remarkable element of Australia’s alliance with the United …
For political tragics, there’s not much than can surprise about John Howard. His consistency reaches towards the rigid. But here’s a statement to puzzle tragics: J.W. Howard—when in power—was a good, pragmatic multilateralist. During nearly …
An odd element of Australia–India relations for two decades has been Canberra’s reluctance to push for India to join Asia’s most important economic group, APEC. The strangeness is heightened by the obvious synergy between Australia’s …
When the Australian polity talks about relations with India, there’s always a wistful bit about the great possibilities and how little has been achieved. The sense of regret requires ignoring a lot of history. It’s …
No suspense this year. The winner is obvious: a masterpiece by the German official photographer, Jesco Denzel, wins the 10th Madeleine Award for the use of symbol, stunt, prop, gesture or jest. The annual prize …
The first priority is to manage great power competition in the Indo‑Pacific. — Australia’s Defence Minister Christopher Pyne Optimists see the glass as half full, while strategists worry that it’s actually a coffin that’s half …
The first strategic priority for Australia in the Indo-Pacific is to manage great-power competition. And the central trend of that competition is the challenge to US dominance. So says Australia’s defence minister. Here’s Christopher Pyne …
In the South Pacific, Australia confronts the law of untended purposes. The law states that if you don’t tend to your policy and political purposes, stuff goes off course and the unexpected arrives. If your …
As travel broadens the mind, so summit season allows an Australian leader to deepen their understanding of the world. The presidential pretensions of the Oz prime ministership get fullest expression at the summit. Working at …
Savour that rare headline. The Pacific wins over political argy-bargy. Australia has listened to the South Pacific and done something to discomfit the ‘junior’ member of the governing coalition, the National Party. Another way to …
The emerging era of great-power competition shapes as a hot peace. ‘Hot peace’ is a better label for what the world faces than ‘new cold war’, not least because we’re well short of an icy …