Authoritarian political leaders in neighbouring Poland and Belarus have tested the limits of public tolerance in recent months. In both countries, they have provoked mass demonstrations. And in both cases, women have been in the …
In its final report issued last week, the Royal Commission into Australia’s National Natural Disaster Arrangements warns of an unprecedented, increasing and unavoidable threat to Australia from climate change, requiring a ‘fundamental shift in strategic …
High-level visits to and from Indonesia in recent weeks have highlighted how differently major powers are playing the instruments of diplomacy to Southeast Asia’s largest and most consequential audience. Whether they have charmed or not …
Sea state China says its second aircraft carrier is ready for deployment after completing a series of tests and exercises. The Shandong is the first aircraft carrier to be built in China. It was commissioned …
Launching ASPI’s latest special report, Submarines: Your questions answered, Peter Jennings interviewed retired admiral James Goldrick on the question of why the Royal Australian Navy needs submarines. The submarine’s great strength is the extent to …
With voting underway in the US, the eyes of the world are focused on America’s democratic process. Unfortunately, so is the attention of groups of state-backed hackers from around the world as the US’s adversaries …
Plenty of commentary and analysis has said what’s at stake in the contest between US President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden. Speculation about US policy approaches to vexed issues that Australia has deep …
Donald Trump looks to be heading for defeat tomorrow if national polling averages that are giving Biden an 8- to 10-point lead hold. But the president is still competitive. This is partly due to the …
Myanmar’s citizens will brave Covid-19 concerns to go to the polls on 8 November. In a survey conducted last month, a third of respondents identified Covid-19 or health issues as a concern or barrier to …
Beyond the major headlines surrounding the US presidential election, a little-noticed development is attracting attention both in India and among American campaign strategists. The rising influence of the Indian-American community in the United States—though barely …
The recently published annual report of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) reveals mounting resourcing pressures on the committee’s ability to carry out its duties as well as uncertainty about its legislative …
By making Vietnam and Indonesia his first overseas ports of call, Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga signalled that he intends to adhere closely to his predecessor Shinzo Abe’s ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’ strategy. Seeing that occur …
Robert B. Zoellick is a pillar of the US foreign policy establishment. He has served as deputy secretary, under-secretary and counsellor in the State Department; counsellor to the secretary of the Treasury; US Trade Representative; …
In this special episode, The Strategist’s Anastasia Kapetas speaks to some of the team behind ASPI’s research on Xinjiang about their recently launched Xinjiang Data Project and the potential global implications of China’s treatment of …
‘Spies cannot be usefully employed without a certain intuitive sagacity. They cannot be properly managed without benevolence and straightforwardness. Without subtle ingenuity of mind, one cannot make certain of the truth of their reports. Be …
While the Royal Australian Air Force must be prepared to fight in a high-level, state-on-state conflict, it must also be able to operate in an increasingly contested Indo-Pacific ‘grey zone’ where competing powers use influence …
With the US presidential election drawing to a close, everyone, it seems, is absorbing the lessons from the surprising 2016 contest. Pollsters, largely blamed for failing to foresee President Donald Trump’s stunning victory last time, …
The bushfire royal commission has warned bluntly that Australia must prepare for the dire consequences of climate change with increasingly intense natural disasters, catastrophic fire conditions, more violent cyclones and continued sea-level rise. Formally titled …
Prime Minister John Howard famously coined the term ‘barbecue stopper’ to refer to a political controversy so hot that it was likely to make backyard diners stop mid-shrimp-sizzle to debate the big issue of the …
For China, at least, US President Donald Trump is the gift that keeps on giving. His calamitous response to the Covid-19 pandemic has made China, whose government mishandled the initial outbreak in January, look like …