Articles

Jason Lancaster: In 1801, it seemed as if Britain had made the entire world her enemy. Her allies had dropped by the wayside, Spain had swapped sides and allied with France, Austria was defeated, and Russia, under Tsar Paul, schemed to divide Europe between itself and France. Three coalitions formed against Republican France had already collapsed, leaving Britain friendless and alone. Yet, Britain fought on, alone.

Brendan Nicholson: International defence companies have been warned that seeking a share of the $200 billion to be spent upgrading the Australian Defence Force will require a much greater commitment than simply obtaining an Australian business number. Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne used a speech at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (April 2018) to launch Australia’s first Defence Industrial Capability Plan, which he described as a blueprint to create the maximum alignment between defence needs and defence industry.

By Hugh White* It is good to see Ben Schreer and Nick Bisley set out so clearly the questions that lie unanswered at the heart of Australia’s foreign policy today (Article is here..) They ask whether we’re really serious about defending Asia’s status quo—the ‘rules-based order’—by opposing China’s bid for regional hegemony in East Asia, and if so what are we willing to do about it? These questions have been evaded for too long

By James Goldrick* 23 April 2018 marks the centenary of the British raid on the German held ports of Zeebrugge and Ostend on the Belgian...

End of financial year funding available: women's leadership development Women & Leadership Australia is administering a national initiative to support the development of female leaders...

By Frank T. Goertner* From the White House to the Pentagon, the message is clear. The world of 21st Century great power competition has arrived, and it is distinctly different from the one today’s U.S. national security enterprise was designed to confront. Now is the time for every agency, department, and service in the executive branch to ask itself hard questions and consider decisive change.

Nick Bisley and Benjamin Schreer: China has become the most formidable challenge to Asia’s regional order, and to Australia’s stake in that order, since the days of Japanese imperialism. It’s not just its growing economic and military power but increasingly Beijing is experimenting with order building and it’s plainly trying to exert political influence beyond its borders.

China’s military issued “robust” challenges to three Australian warships as they travelled through the South China Sea to Vietnam earlier this month. Defence sources...

Aussie steel makers Bisalloy and BlueScope have had yet another win after a new contract was signed with Naval Group Australia to produce up to 250 tonnes of specialised steel. The steel produced will be tested to determine whether it meets the specification for the pressure hull of our new Future Submarines, which is an essential safety requirement.

David Johnston has been appointed as the first Australian Defence Export Advocate. This role will provide international advocacy on behalf of local defence industry to help secure export sales and contracts. The Minister for Defence Industry, Christopher Pyne, congratulated Mr Johnston on his appointment and looked forward to working closely with him to help secure export successes for Australia’s defence industry.