The RAN would have to mobilise practically the entire fleet to match the missile inventory of one Chinese cruiser.

Ardern was installed as New Zealand Labour leader just to 'save the furniture'. Less that 100 days later, she is the nation’s 40th prime minister.

While China under Xi Jinping is going to be challenging for the region, ultimately the Party Congress is about what the leadership is doing for China.

Rachael Buckland, a Research Associate with the Lowy Institute’s Migration and Border Policy Project, with links on developments across the field.

What Trump might do on the Japan trade deficit, educating China's students, the legacy of Julie Bishop's economic diplomacy drive and more.

Marawi won't be truly liberated until it's safe for displaced residents to return.

Tillerson’s speech also signaled a significant hardening of US attitudes towards China's Belt and Road Initiative.

Euan Moyle, an intern with the Lowy Institute's Pacific Islands Program, with links on developments across the Pacific.

Australia would prefer the US to focus on the Indo-Pacific rather than become further embroiled in the Middle East. We may well be disappointed.

The challenge is not to patch the old model of globalisation with bits of string and gum. It is to construct a new model.

Holding a provocative, quixotic and externally friendless referendum was an unnecessary risk for the Kurds to take, for very little return.

America’s strategy of ‘building partner capacity’ is beginning to show its weaknesses.

Myanmar’s security challenges remain predominantly land-based, although they do aggravate security threats in its maritime domain.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is experiencing a 'faster than average' drop in his approval ratings.

Analysis into more than 5000 Chinese aid projects, Liberian and Pakistani public-private partnerships in education, and more.

Australia's proposed legislation can be improved in four important ways.

Australia’s present approach to Belt and Road is not unreasonable.

Trump has failed to apply Roosevelt's advice in dealing with the Middle East.

What dropping the Iran deal would mean, how Americans feel about 'America First', Australian engagement in North Korea and more.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Interpreter World Politics Trivia Challenge is on again.

US should be reminded that leaving UNESCO is counter to Australian values.

In Russia's view, real responsibility for the crisis lies with the US.

Questions regarding the actual depth of India-Japan defence relations have resurfaced.

A US withdrawal will lead to deterioration of trust in US commitments.

Nauru's growth outlook, French resettlement numbers, irregular Bangladeshi migration and more.

Populism may have an element of hatred but simply hating the haters will not work.

The Belt and Road Initiative represents the kind of complex issues that will increasingly define the Australia-China relationship.

This week's links also include an investigation into the deportation off Chinese nationals from Fiji.

Australia's One-China Policy requires a familiarity with China's modern and classical history.

Hard questions must be asked about the future of the Royal Navy and the totality of Britain’s force structure.

Trump appears determined to prove the Iranian Supreme Leader was right when he said the US couldn’t be trusted.

Librarians should pause before pulping dusty Chinese journals tucked away in compactors. They may be the only ones left.

As more small island developing states reach the high-income threshold, the OECD needs to review its measure of ODA eligibility.

The crisis Andrew Leigh detects in Australia is not societal, it is almost purely political.

The North Koreans may very well say no. But there's little harm in trying.

The digital era can either rob or reward foreign correspondents – and their audiences.

The Palestinian economy lacks the foundational assets required for effective and sustainable growth, even with substantial aid disbursements.

In a choice between US isolationism and exceptionalism, it’s the latter that Americans hold dear.

Countries that supported the regime will have the inside running for reconstruction contracts.

Is Australia's media interrogating or demonising China, the risks of anti-migrant sentiment, the weirdest North Korean crisis yet and more.

The decision to acquire the French Shortfin Barracuda is extravagantly expensive and very high-risk.

There are many factors that can comprise the national interest. Fuel security should be at the top of the list.

The claims made by Drysdale and Denton have no merit.

US threats are not seen as credible and are unlikely to work on Pakistan in the future.

Muslims are certainly a target for Senator Hanson, but I’ve little doubt their integration into Australian society is proceeding in much the same way as past waves of migration.

Labor is going back to the future with a distinctly economic determinist approach to future engagement with Asia.

This week's links also include a tracking matrix for patterns of displacement and a lecture on how migration has shaped New Zealand.

Australia won’t be a leader when it comes to the volume of aid any time soon. But it can lead by example in other ways.

The evacuation of Vanuatu's Ambae Island, a winner declared in South Highlands province, Cook Islands a developing nation for now and more.

While forecaster moods have been volatile, global growth overall has been pretty consistent – and pretty good.