20 Jul 2023
The north’s defence of Australia
Northern Australia has long been viewed as a strategic vulnerability. The latest Defence review socialises a different idea.
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19 Jul 2023
Why China tripled its heavy truck shipments to Central Asia: Unravelling the influence of Russia’s war in Ukraine
A sharp spike in overall exports to the region appears to provide Beijing a pathway to indirectly support the Kremlin’s war effort. -
19 Jul 2023
Why the Black Sea Grain Initiative must be restored
The collapse of a deal integral to world food security will imperil millions of lives. -
19 Jul 2023
No playing games with Australia’s reputation
The Commonwealth Games – like its diplomatic counterpart – belongs to a different age. -
19 Jul 2023
The Fix: Beauty and bravery
In this new Interpreter feature, we’re inviting short observations about issues or resources that might otherwise be missed. -
19 Jul 2023
What Norway might learn from Nauru after a massive phosphate find
A handful of countries meet demand for an essential fertiliser ingredient – and geopolitical competition complicates the equation. -
18 Jul 2023
Regulating artificial intelligence: How the EU just got us closer
In these times of high-tech angst, a new draft Act passed in the European Parliament sets the scene for the future of AI. -
18 Jul 2023
Has history left Aung San Suu Kyi behind?
She may be imprisoned and politically weakened, but the former leader of Myanmar remains a potent symbol of power. -
18 Jul 2023
A Pacific power play could prove the Quad’s relevance
Off-grid households across the region are desperate for electricity that doesn’t come with (China's) strings attached. -
17 Jul 2023
It might be plastic fantastic, but Barbie lends cartoonish credibility to China’s nine-dash line
Barbie does her dash with Vietnam, showing how maps have meaning. -
17 Jul 2023
The cost-benefit of turning “dirty” shipping clean
The engines of global trade pump out enormous amounts of carbon and vulnerable Pacific islands are fighting for a change. -
17 Jul 2023
The emergence of “collective strategic ambiguity” on Taiwan
With a change in language, has Washington over-promised on its allies’ appetite for conflict with China? -
14 Jul 2023
Setting the standard: An important step on the path to net zero emissions
A little-known international body has just helped set a global baseline for sustainability reporting. -
14 Jul 2023
Despite the excitement, India’s South China Sea policy remains unchanged
Backing the Philippines over the 2016 arbitration award doesn’t mean India is about to abandon caution in efforts to balance China. -
14 Jul 2023
Australia and Southeast Asia: Driving EV collaboration across borders
A regional value chain for battery production – with Australia to process critical minerals and export these products – is too good a chance to ignore. -
13 Jul 2023
Samoa and the Alliance of Small Islands States show climate security is also about loss and damage
Adaptation and mitigation strategies alone will not be enough to recover from the effects of climate change. -
13 Jul 2023
For Indonesia’s haunting past, Jokowi’s resolution is non-judicial
A new book throws light on the 1965 massacres – but the government’s redress for victims is yet to extend to justice for the perpetrators. -
13 Jul 2023
Putin is Xi’s useful idiot
In the geopolitical tussle between superpowers, Russia pays the price and China reaps the benefits. -
12 Jul 2023
The Fix: Putting in the boot
In this new Interpreter feature, we’re inviting short observations about issues or resources that might otherwise be missed. -
12 Jul 2023
How long can Putin’s “special relationship” with Erdoğan last?
Despite mutterings about a Turkish “stab in the back”, Russia needs Türkiye – Putin’s reign may depend on it. -
12 Jul 2023
Scrapping IMF surcharges is key to cutting debt burden on distressed nations
The economic logic of charging beyond lending rates doesn’t add up and also undermines the Fund’s legitimacy. -
11 Jul 2023
“We can’t be passive”: New Zealand’s changing tone about a more worrying world
A new foreign policy assessment sees the Pacific as no longer “strategically benign” – but the concern extends well beyond the region. -
11 Jul 2023
Beijing’s bad bet on Moscow
The collapse of the Putin regime is something China wants to avoid. A weak Kremlin is better than a headless one. -
11 Jul 2023
Charting new paths for Antarctic protection despite China’s resistance
Too much would be lost by tearing up existing agreements. There are other ways to entice Beijing to cooperate. -
11 Jul 2023
Existential risk is a whole-of-society challenge
From climate change and pandemics to nuclear war and extinction by AI, collective action will be imperative. -
10 Jul 2023
French fragmentation
Unpopular for peculiar reasons, Emmanuel Macron grapples with a parade of populists and a nation divided by grievance. -
10 Jul 2023
Military hospital ships from China and the US are plying across Pacific Islands. But this growing competition can do more harm than good
Large white hulled ships are big public relations yet do little to address significant health system issues in the region. -
10 Jul 2023
The Quad: Tackling the spider, not cobwebs, in cyberspace
A security pact, but not as we know it. How a commitment to uplift software security will reap benefits for all. -
7 Jul 2023
Geopolitical duel in the Pacific: Solomon Islands security at risk as Australia and China compete
Honiara has successfully leveraged strategic competition to meet its security interests but there are worrying signs of friction. -
7 Jul 2023
Timor-Leste: Breaking free from temptation of easy money
The Gusmão-led government has a raft of development challenges and cannot afford to rely solely on oil and gas. -
7 Jul 2023
Paris climate summit: A new global financing pact takes shape
A failure? More a disappointment, and rich nations are at least starting to recognise a growing legitimacy deficit across the Global South. -
6 Jul 2023
Economic diplomacy: Power shifts with Jakarta
Australia and Indonesia may be riding together in a new electric diplomatic limo, but they still have separate roadmaps. -
6 Jul 2023
Australia’s absent ambassador must return to Ukraine
If the PM won’t provide more than a few military off-casts in support, sending back the top envoy should be an easy step. -
5 Jul 2023
Stumped by the cricket controversy? Here’s how sport and politics collide
When PMs weigh in on the “spirit”, you might start to wonder about the effect on oft-cited shared values. -
5 Jul 2023
Don’t believe the hype: the many futures of AI
Is generative artificial intelligence the source of a utopian future, or will it become the author of its own destruction? -
5 Jul 2023
The Fix: Backflips and realignments
In this new Interpreter feature, we’re inviting short observations about issues or resources that might otherwise be missed. -
5 Jul 2023
The downsides for Australia from the US‑PNG defence agreement
Sovereignty concerns about the American deal will create additional hurdles for Australia-PNG Defence Treaty currently under negotiation. -
4 Jul 2023
Suspicious minds: Will closer Australia‑Indonesia engagement yield greater trust?
Despite the flourishing bromance between Albanese and Jokowi, the Lowy Institute Poll shows an ongoing need to deepen public understanding and familiarity on both sides. -
4 Jul 2023
Reforming Australia’s trading system – a long hard slog but worth the effort
Confidence in the quality of traded goods and services relies on certification that agreed standards are met. That’s a regulation challenge, too. -
4 Jul 2023
From hydrocarbons to hydrogen? Gulf states seek the good oil in green transition
The region that has long dominated global energy politics is well placed to shape a shift to new supplies. -
4 Jul 2023
How Maldives is adapting to a changing security climate – and where Australia benefits
A small player facing big problems looks to old friends and new for help. -
3 Jul 2023
Jokowi’s visit to Australia is about much more than electric vehicles
The President has a roadmap for economic success that could also set bilateral relations on the right path. -
3 Jul 2023
Unleashing chaos: Nova Kakhovka Dam destruction threatens global food security
The collapse of critical hydroelectric infrastructure will have devastating knock-on effects for Europe’s breadbasket. -
3 Jul 2023
China’s answer to Top Gun is a flat spin
Hardly the touted blockbuster, Born To Fly is more dreary vanity flight than rousing nationalist paean. -
30 Jun 2023
Globalisation promised growth. Now emerging economies need a new path
Rising trade barriers and financial stress has upended the idea that a free and open world economy will bring prosperity. -
30 Jun 2023
The looming fate of Fukushima’s contaminated water
Environmental concerns in the Pacific also come with political risks for Japan’s prime minister. -
30 Jun 2023
How Australia can leverage France’s Indo-Pacific presence
A tumultuous couple of years in relations can settle to a new acceptance – seeing opportunities as well as risks. -
29 Jun 2023
Better late than never: Vietnam releases 2021–30 power plan
Just don’t expect coal to be out of the energy mix quite yet. -
29 Jun 2023
Bougainville – What’s next?
The 2019 referendum saw an overwhelming vote for independence, but the outcome is still unclear. -
28 Jun 2023
Pragmatism rules the public outlook on Australia-China relations
The 2023 Lowy Institute Poll shows the tenor of debate can influence perceptions of opportunity and threat.