by Michael Shoebridge | Jun 8, 2023 | China
Australian prime minister Albanese isn’t the only one talking about the need for ‘guardrails’ in our region to manage and reduce the risk of conflict. This idea has been put forward by US President Biden and senior members of his Administration like Secretary of State...
by Anthony Bergin | Jun 7, 2023 | China, Strategy & Capability
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has just issued a warning to China over Taiwan. Delivering the keynote address at the Indo-Pacific’s most significant security conference the Prime Minister told delegates at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore that taking Taiwan...
by Michael Shoebridge | Jun 6, 2023 | Strategy & Capability, Ukraine
There are five reasons Australia should be doing more now to support the Ukrainian military fight Putin’s forces. Only one is that helping 44 million people living in freedom resist a murderously brutal invasion is the right thing to do. The other four are more...
by Peter Jennings | Jun 2, 2023 | AUKUS, Reading
Hyman Rickover served in the United States Navy for 63 years. He pioneered nuclear propulsion and civilian nuclear power, personally approved the trials into service of 126 nuclear submarines and through sheer force of personality changed the Navy’s officer culture...
by Peter Jennings | Jun 1, 2023 | China
In the skies above the South China Sea last Friday a Chinese People’s Liberation Army J-16 fighter aircraft flew perilously close to the nose of an American RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft. The US Defence Department said the “unnecessarily aggressive manoeuvre” forced...
by Anthony Bergin | May 30, 2023 | China
I stood on Cihu beach, on the Taiwanese island of Kinmen, contemplating the hazy silhouettes of Xiamen skyscrapers only three kilometres away on the Chinese mainland. My travelling companion’s phone pinged. The message from Vodafone said: “Welcome to China”. The...
by Lesley Seebeck | May 27, 2023 | Strategy & Capability
As policy advisors and decision makers consider the problem of defence innovation, the video of the SpaceX Starship launch of 20 April 2023 should be required viewing. When they watch it, they should note the audacity of the vision, the engineering, and the global...
by Michael Shoebridge | May 26, 2023 | China, Strategy & Capability
Eight Australian nuclear submarines operating sometime in the 2050s is a long way off. Even Australia operating its first Virginia Class submarine, all things going well, by 2033 is a decade and $60bn away. Well before then, Australia’s waters (our large...
by Anthony Bergin and Neil Baird | May 25, 2023 | China, Strategy & Capability
Recent revelations that China has launched multiple new civilian ferries that could be used as amphibious assault ships against Taiwan have caused consternation among some strategic analysts. Some analysts see mobilised civilian assets such as roll-on, roll-off...
by Marcus Hellyer | May 25, 2023 | Defence Budget, Strategy & Capability
With the Albanese government’s adoption of the Defence Strategic Review, Australia’s defence strategy has become more focused. Instead of maintaining a defence force that can do a bit of everything, the focus is now squarely on deterring potential Chinese aggression...
