It’s almost clichéd to begin any discussion of geostrategic issues with a quote from the Chinese warrior-philosopher Sun Tzu. But in assessing the implications for Australia of US President Joe Biden’s national security strategy, it …
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has blamed the West for fomenting the widespread unrest that has rocked Iran over the past few weeks. But his claim is no longer heeded. The ranks of the protestors …
Last week, US President Joe Biden released his administration’s long-delayed national security strategy. It opens with a sense of urgency, declaring this a ‘decisive decade for America and the world’ to outmanoeuvre global competitors and …
This week, senior Chinese Communist Party officials are meeting in Beijing for the party’s 20th national congress, at which Xi Jinping is expected to secure a third term as leader. In this episode, ASPI senior …
In August, the US government made a major commitment to America’s semiconductor manufacturing sector with the announcement of US$50 billion in funding under the CHIPS and Science Act. Bolstered by this move, memory chip manufacturer …
Immediately after World War II, the Paris-exiled Polish intellectual Jerzy Giedroyc (of Lithuanian origins, born in Minsk) coined a phrase that would come to define Poland’s foreign policy towards its eastern neighbours: ‘There will be …
Fixing issues at the expense of positioning Australia for the future is likely to be a theme of the 2022–23 federal budget to be released later this month. It’s a case of focusing on the …
Every year the Australian defence commentariat replays a ritualised dance that goes like this. First, the Australian National Audit Office releases its major projects report providing detailed information on the progress of around 25 of …
Technology mogul Elon Musk hasn’t won himself many new fans in the national security community over the past fortnight with his suggestions about pathways forward on Ukraine and Taiwan. He would do well to stay out of peace negotiations on …
As Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand gear up to host major world summits next month, the 55-year-old Association of Southeast Asian Nations is facing an existential crisis, owing to severe internal splits over Russia’s invasion of …
What does it mean to win? Instinctively, this seems like a straightforward question that should have a correspondingly straightforward answer. But when it comes to developing a national edge or strategic advantage, concepts such as …
Iran’s mass movement of popular protest, sparked by the death in custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini at the hands of the country’s notorious morality police, has now entered its fifth week. While many Western media …
In 2016, I wrote a report on Australia’s defence and security partnership with Singapore, a few months after bilateral ties were upgraded to a comprehensive strategic partnership. I concluded then that the ‘lion and kangaroo’ …
As Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong visits Canberra this week for the annual Australia–Singapore leaders’ dialogue and meets Anthony Albanese for the first time since the Labor leader became prime minister, the focus should …
When Australia became a nation on 1 January 1901, it was at war in South Africa and China. The six Australian colonies had sent militia and bushmen contingents to the Boer War (1899–1902) and dispatched …
Rumours that President Xi Jinping was under house arrest amid a military coup in China—apparently driven by Falun Gong–linked social media accounts known for spreading factually problematic information—spread widely in late September. The available facts …
Planet A Last week, at the 41st Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization in Montreal, member states agreed on a ‘long-term global aspirational goal’ for aviation of net-zero emissions by 2050, despite opposition from …
Anyone unconscious of the impact of high-tech war on children should look at an exhibition of children’s art running now at the Australian National University. They are drawings spanning seven decades, from survivors of Nazi …
When it comes to Australia’s policy in the Pacific islands, what’s first needed is a changed mindset. We need to recognise that the region is key terrain. It’s essential for US and Australian defence; it’s …
China’s share of Australia’s trade—both exports and imports—is falling and is being replaced by other trading partners in Asia, bringing important diversification to Australian markets. The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics trade report shows that …