Is Europe broken?

Last week, in a major political victory for embattled Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the European Council decided to open accession talks with his country. According to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, it was …

Why are so many young Chinese depressed?

China’s high youth unemployment rate and increasingly disillusioned young people—many of whom are ‘giving up’ on work—have attracted much attention from global media outlets and Chinese policymakers. The standard narrative is to associate the problem …

Australia misses the boat in the Red Sea

The 2023 defence strategic review noted that Australia’s economy had become more interconnected with the Indo-Pacific and the world, and that brought a fundamental interest in protecting the rules-based order upon which international trade depends. …

Putin’s dead end

In his annual press conference, Russian President Vladimir Putin made it clear that he will be ready for a peace settlement with Ukraine only after he has achieved his goals, which haven’t changed since he …

Washington’s flawed Myanmar policy

As the Israel–Hamas war rages, the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza is grabbing headlines—as well it should. But another armed conflict, in Myanmar, is also causing mass suffering, with more than two million people internally …

Seeing through the DARC, deep into space

The establishment by Australia and its AUKUS partners, the United States and the United Kingdom, of a deep space advanced radar capability (DARC) will help them respond to the threat of attacks on their satellites …

Leveraging neurodivergence for national security

If we can predict an adversary’s next move, we already have an advantage. Over millennia, those analysing warfare have identified rules, moves and countermoves, but also strengths and weaknesses on both sides. While sovereign capability …

US Congress fires the AUKUS starting gun

Welcome, Australia, to the American culture wars. With passage of the US National Defense Authorization Act a mere two and a half months late, we’ve seen the first significant legislative action since the AUKUS partnership …

The threat spectrum

Planet A This year’s UN climate conference, COP28, was the first to include a day of programming dedicated to the theme of health, relief, recovery and peace. The program provide an opportunity for health, aid …

Revolutionising ADF recruiting: an opt-out system

The Australian Defence Force’s recruiting problems are becoming chronic. Beyond needing to staff all the new systems coming online in the three services, current recruitment has failed to staff even the existing order of battle. …