Smoke clears. Agony and anguish ebb. The fallen depart. The integration of AusAID into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade—the greatest revolution in Australia’s foreign policy bureaucracy since 1987—is done, if not dusted. The …
Kim Jong Un unveils sculpted eyebrow work and defined hair at Politburo meeting today | @KCNAWatch pic.twitter.com/lbejbtJeUb — Frank Feinśtein (@frankfeinstein) February 19, 2015 In this week’s collection of reads and podcasts, we’ve got Islamic State …
Peter Jennings’ piece ‘Indonesia and Australia: prisoner’s dilemma’ points out the main options in the shorter term for the Australian government in considering possible negotiations with Jakarta over Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran’s urgent situation. …
Defence Minister Kevin Andrews’ confirmation on Monday that tenders were finally about to open for LAND 400—a $10 billion project to replace Army’s thousand or so M113, ASLAV, and Bushmaster combat vehicles—sparked considerable interest from …
With continuing uncertainty in Australia about the future direction of SEA 1000, it’s both interesting and refreshing to visit Sweden to see what’s happening regarding the development of the next generation of submarines. There’s a …
Put aside for one moment your emotion over the looming execution of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran. Anger and appeals to decency won’t save them. The only thing that might work is to think through …
Welcome to CT Scan, a weekly wrap of developments and ideas in terrorism and counter-terrorism (CT) from Australia and abroad. First, there have been some domestic developments resulting from the Sydney siege, with the joint …
This week’s installment covers unexplained wealth, the ACC and gangs, anti-bikie laws, cybercrime in Australia, CVE and the Boston Marathon bomber trial. Unexplained wealth: revenue or effect? While the Australian Government works through the options …
Concepts are long-lived in the world of strategy—so long-lived that we need to revisit them periodically to confirm that their meaning hasn’t shifted. Lately, I’ve started thinking that the notion of a ‘second nuclear age’ …
In what was a big week for Canberra international cyber policy folk, in addition to ICPC’s workshop in KL, last week also saw the inaugural meeting of the Australia–Japan Cyber Policy Dialogue. The meeting was …
I’ve often argued that the best predictor of the ADF’s future force structure is the current one. In other words, it’s much more likely that today’s platforms and capabilities will be replaced by something that …
Welcome to Rapid Fire, a weekly wrap of recent developments in international land warfare, to run alongside other regular ASPI updates like the long-running Cyber Wrap and the more recently added Sea State and The Beat. …
In an oped piece published today I’ve focused on the issue of safeguarding Australian school children from the risks of radicalisation and extremism. I’d like to add four extra thoughts on this issue. First, in …
We’re excited to launch a new weekly update, Flight Path, that’ll chart the major developments and debates in airpower and space technology. Opening this week’s post is news on the F-35. On 27 January, RAAF Squadron …
As 2014 came to a close, the Strategist hosted a debate on the potential for STOVL jets to operate from the RAN’s new LHDs. That debate followed on from an ASPI Strategic Insights Paper that …
The Obama administration’s new National Security Strategy (NSS) aims to provide a comprehensive guide as to how the United States intends to secure its national interests and global position. It’s long overdue given that the …
I think the Option J scenario has finally reached some equilibrium – competitive evaluation it is. But I do wonder at suggestions that we should do a hybrid build or build overseas and then fit …
Submarines were the big story in Australia last week, and there was a great deal of coverage focusing on the political dimensions of that story in the Aussie press. The Prime Minister ruled out an open tender …
Trend stories are always about the warmth of the water and the health of the frog. How close to boiling is the water, how much capacity does the frog have to respond? Asia’s darkest trend …
We’re keeping your Black Friday screens bright with infographics of the conflict in Syria, private military security companies, China’s military, India and Australian uranium, Fatboy Kim and more. The Institute for the Study of War …