Asia
Xi in America: China's poor grasp of public diplomacy on full display
Having a Catholic Pope and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China descend on Washington at almost exactly the same time helped illustrate something important about…
Digital Asia links: Battle of the US State visits  President Xi Jinping vs. Prime Minister Modi
The Asia Pacific is the most dynamic digital landscape in the world, home to the fastest adopters of new technologies and the largest concentration of mobile and social media…
Analyses
Congress and Asia-Pacific policy: Dysfunction and neglect
In this Analysis, Lowy Institute Research Fellow Aaron L. Connelly examines the role of the US Congress in policy toward the Asia-Pacific region.Aaron L Connelly
Australia's Future Submarine Project: The urgent need for economic scrutiny
The pace of decision-making on Australian submarines is quickening, with the core of the current debate driven exclusively by South Australian politics. But the insistent voices…
Open-source intelligence links: Soldiers on Instagram, Russian submarines, Chinese drones, Syria and more
Thanks to advances in digital technologies, open-source intelligence (OSINT) is playing an increasingly important role in the mix of intelligence collected by state and non-state…
If Scott Morrison becomes treasurer, he can't change the world. But he can reinterpret it
Scott Morrison, widely expected to be appointed Australia's new treasurer early next week, can't change the world. Or at least not over the next year or so. But he can reinterpret…
Australia-South Korea 2+2 delivers ambitious agenda
One week ago – a long time in politics – the South Korean and Australian foreign and defence ministers held a '2-2' meeting in Sydney. This high-level biennial conclave for the…
As China marches forward, Japan and Russia watch with worry
Just one day after China's V-Day parade was held under auspiciously azure skies, smog rolled back over Beijing, as if a reminder of the evanescence of great power. George Orwell…
Waiting for the Fed to move
Global financial markets are on tenterhooks waiting for the US Federal Reserve to decide when to start raising the Fed funds rate – the short-term interest rate which sets the…
Australia-India nuclear deal: Parliamentary treaties committee recommends tough conditions
Parliament's Joint Standing Committee on Treaties (JSCOT) presented its report on the Australia India nuclear cooperation Agreement on 8 September after ten of months deliberation…