United States
Signs of a deal between US and China, and a rethink
It is not yet agreed, may yet fail, and is anyway unlikely to settle matters, but the impending “phase one” trade deal could be a useful ceasefire in the US economic war with…
Chart of the week: Trump and the US-Australia alliance
Donald Trump is about to be the third US President in history to be impeached. Australians won’t be surprised – he’s never been popular here. But Australia’s alliance with the…
China’s slam dunk of the NBA is a game changer
The US trade war against China launched by President Donald Trump has hitherto lacked a clear moral dimension. There are economic arguments – that China insists on tilting the…
Film review: Torture, lies, and videotape
The Report, directed by Scott Z. Burns. Opens 14 November in Australia.
More than a century ago, the US invasion of the Philippines turned from a supposed act of liberation into…
Towards a peaceful and inclusive Asia
Small states are states too. They have their own agency, their own interests, and their own preferences, and it is important they do not see the world through the perspectives…
Finally, some plain talk on the Quad
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave a foreign policy speech to the Heritage Foundation on Tuesday. Australia’s foreign policy analysts can be very grateful for these candid…
Books
Ironclad - Forging a new future for America's alliances: book chapter
In a new book edited by Dr. Michael J. Green of Center for Strategic & International Studies in Washington D.C., the final chapter by Alex Oliver looks at…
Diplomatic immunity: Time to change the rules
The current diplomatic spat between the United Kingdom and the United States, following a fatal road accident involving the wife of a US “diplomat”, draws attention, yet again, to…
US-China trade talks: No deal yet, but a breakthrough of sorts
It is only a start, but the Friday trade talks agreement between China and the US is still the best news for the world economy in the almost three years since Donald Trump won the…
Why does North Korea keep dragging its feet?
The long-awaited US–North Korea working-level talks collapsed last week, as Washington and Pyongyang could not agree on the definition of “denuclearisation” and mutual concessions…