Intensifying geopolitical competition is having an adverse effect on the internet and innovation. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, increasing Chinese aggression in the South China Sea and the lack of an Iran nuclear deal are contributing …
In September 2014, Sri Lanka stirred the embers of conflict in the Indian Ocean region by allowing Chinese naval vessels to dock at one of its ports. At the time, India took issue with the …
Despite the inevitably heavy redactions, the Department of Defence’s brief for the incoming government makes for interesting reading, including its section on climate change. The briefing, released under freedom of information laws, acknowledges that Defence’s …
When the White House announced that President Joe Biden will host the US – Pacific Island Country Summit on 28–29 September, it noted that it’s the ‘first ever’ such meeting. This both focused attention on …
When a ‘shock’ or ‘extremist’ election result comes with record-low voter turnout and a big yawn from financial markets, it is time to find new descriptors. The decisive victory in Italy’s general election by the …
Climate change has been, and will continue to be, a persistent and growing challenge for many parts of the world. Over recent weeks there has been a steady flow of striking imagery of the impacts …
The smoke has cleared from China’s military exercises in the Taiwan Strait last month, and the sequence of events highlights some of the realities of the regional security outlook. US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited …
For more than four years, Chinese President Xi Jinping has been giving speeches and going on inspection tours throughout China delivering an important message—China needs to become less reliant on key technologies imported from abroad. …
The Vienna negotiations to revive the July 2015 Iran nuclear agreement—the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA—are once again in danger of fizzling out. Tehran and Washington, along with fellow signatories Britain, France, Germany, …
The first US summit with South Pacific leaders offers symbolism and the chance of future substance. The US announces, ‘We’re back!’ The summit on Wednesday and Thursday is a statement that the US can no …
Optus, Australia’s second-largest telecommunications company, yesterday notified the media that the data of its customers had been compromised in a cyberattack. It remains unclear how many customers are affected, but CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin said …
Sea state US lawmakers are urging officials to begin training Australian personnel to support the Royal Australian Navy’s acquisition of nuclear submarines under AUKUS. This push for increased training follows Defence Minister Richard Marles’s announcement …
Discussions during a trilogy of AUKUS-related events in Washington on the one-year anniversary of the deal’s announcement suggest the novel strategic partnership is about much more than submarines, the transfer of nuclear propulsion know-how and …
One of the significant challenges with commodity investments is knowing when to buy and sell. Some view such investments as a form of institutionalised gambling. However, an understanding of the market, and a firm plan …
Members of a European Parliament committee examining foreign interference and economic coercion are urging the creation by the world’s democracies of a permanent system to share anti-coercion practices and information on threats. Australia would be …
Moscow’s deepening reliance on Beijing is of long-term concern to Australia and its Indo-Pacific partners. In a sideline meeting at last week’s Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin seemed to cower in front …
When Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his war of aggression against Ukraine on 24 February, he evidently expected a quick and easy victory. Having implied in his speeches that Ukraine was a flimsy fiction of …
Semiconductors are the single most important technology underpinning leading-edge industries. They’re essential for the proper functioning of everything from smartphones to nuclear submarines and from medical equipment to wireless communications. Australia’s notable lack of participation …
Russian President Vladimir Putin sought this month to contrast the vibrant economies of Asia with the decadence of the West, signalling that Russia’s future lay with the East. The economic and political dominance of the …
Tensions have been rising in outer space in recent years, leading to a covert arms race and what some perceive as the brink of space warfare. Space-based technologies such as communications satellites are an integral …