John McBeth, one of Asia’s pre-eminent journalists with a record of scrupulous and groundbreaking reporting, has died after a short illness. He was 79. Over a career spanning more than 62 years, McBeth helped shape …
The Northern Territory government often compares the proximity of Darwin to Asian and Australian cities. To be sure, Asia is very close to Darwin, with Dili just one hour’s flying time away. An often-used government …
In recent weeks, US President Joe Biden has boldly referred to the United States as the world’s ‘indispensable nation’. But when the term was first coined—by Secretary of State Madeleine Albright in the 1990s—the world was a …
Manila’s recently published national security policy recognises that there are multifaceted threats to the country. Some of these threats are more urgent than others, and the fiscal environment in the Philippines makes the task of …
A leading business guru of yesteryear once observed that management was ‘doing things right’, while leadership was ‘doing the right things’. But what do you call it when you’re doing both? This is an important …
Maritime security is a broad concept that spans several domains. Traditionally it has focused on defence, state-based military threats, and the protection of national interests and sovereignty at sea. Less attention has been paid to …
A significant focus in the 2023 defence strategic review was the north of Australia. While it had the expected references to northern Australia’s military and geographical advantages, more importantly, the review highlighted that a lot …
In recent months, announcements of successful tests by various Southeast Asian telecommunication companies in RedCap (‘reduced capacity’) 5G have been a reminder of the region’s gradual rollout of fifth-generation networks. RedCap 5G is expected to …
Last year, while standing on the foreshore at Nightcliff in Darwin at low tide, I watched an ascending Bell MV-22 Osprey transforming from helicopter to airplane mode. Looking down just after it passed, I saw …
In this episode, ASPI’s Gatra Priyandita speaks to Thomas Parks from the Asia Foundation about geopolitics in Southeast Asia. While there’s a lot of attention on the US–China rivalry and its implications for the region, …
Independent states in the Pacific region have the lowest levels of women’s political representation in the world. Fewer than 7% of Pacific politicians are women, compared with 27% globally. The absence of women’s voices in political …
As any army officer will tell you, it’s very hard to achieve a destroy mission. Yet that is what, publicly at least, Israeli leaders have tasked the Israel Defense Forces to do. Prime Minister Benjamin …