2 days ago
Myanmar and ASEAN’s parallel diplomacy trap
In Southeast Asia, national imperatives are increasingly outweighing regional cohesion.
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2 days ago
A border skirmish and leaked phone call sees the Thailand-Cambodia dispute surge back to life
An international dispute that is all about domestic politics. -
2 days ago
Destabilisation of refugee camps in Bangladesh could lead to a new exodus of Rohingyas
A security breakdown and aid reductions could push refugees to seek dangerous alternative routes. -
2 days ago
No Trump photo-op for the PM but a reminder where Australia’s future lies
The cancelled G7 meeting is a timely reminder that Australia’s most promising opportunities lie in deeper engagement with our region. -
2 days ago
India and Pakistan are on a global charm offensive, but is it worth listening?
Both sides have a story to tell but dialogue appears to be a dead end. -
2 days ago
Australians see through tariff fears to real economic threat
Latest Lowy polling shows strong support for local manufacturing, but green tech backing might be on the slide. -
2 days ago
US-China: Rather than mutual understanding, strive for competition without conflict
Military hotlines and exercise notifications could reduce escalation risks while acknowledging persistent misreading of intent. -
2 days ago
Albanese must learn that smiles and handshakes with Trump won’t save Australia’s AUKUS ambitions
Dealing with Trump 2.0 demands concrete defence spending increases, not diplomatic charm, as Pentagon reviews submarine deal. -
2 days ago
What year is it in China? Rethinking the timeline of a rising power
China’s international posture reflects not the confidence of a stable hegemon, but the impulses of a nationalist power in transition. -
18 Jun 2025
Why DEI won't DIE: 80 years of protecting rights and fighting for equality
The protection of human rights and principles of equality are fundamental to international law and can’t be dismantled overnight by one state alone. -
18 Jun 2025
How America First could undermine the Quad’s critical minerals plans
A counter to Beijing’s resource dominance is best served by coordinated action, but Donald Trump wants to go his own way. -
18 Jun 2025
AI’s war on consent: Women face coded misogyny
Evidence is growing from across the world that digital platforms increasingly enable gender-based violence with authorities slow to catch-up. -
17 Jun 2025
Australia overtakes China in the Pacific as America vacates the lane
Public perceptions of influence measured in the latest Lowy Institute Poll see Australia surge ahead as the “permanent contest” unfolds. -
17 Jun 2025
Israel–Iran conflict: Moscow positions itself for advantage
Russia is once more on no-one’s side but its own. -
17 Jun 2025
Trump's State Department purge cuts deeper than in his first presidency
Reducing America’s global diplomatic presence to pre-Second World War levels will only lead to declining influence. -
17 Jun 2025
Brave new interior world: The rise of self-enhancing states
Power is shifting inward, not outward, with control and influence the currency of choice. -
16 Jun 2025
Explaining Australia’s enduring faith in democracy even as the world backslides
Tech disruption and US concerns haven’t dampened Australian enthusiasm for democratic institutions. -
16 Jun 2025
Australia’s military benefits beyond war – the career challenge
How to sell young people on defence force service when shared values under the US alliance appear increasingly questionable. -
16 Jun 2025
Putting the “Indo” in Indo-Pacific, Australia’s westward pivot
Embassy openings and patrol boat gifts signal Canberra's recognition that Indian Ocean influence requires active engagement. -
16 Jun 2025
How should politicians “read” the 2025 Lowy Institute Poll?
Representative democracy requires politicians to weigh the public mood against their own judgment on complex policy questions. -
13 Jun 2025
Tigray can’t afford another war, and the world can’t afford to do nothing
Australia should encourage international condemnation after a blockade of relief trucks in the northern regions of Ethiopia. -
13 Jun 2025
China’s cartographic claims test fragile India rapprochement
Despite four years of negotiations and recent agreements, territorial assertions continue to strain ties between the two powers. -
13 Jun 2025
The upside of the world’s downgrade in foreign aid
Australia has an opportunity to fill the gap left by the US and Europe – and it’s good for democracy, too. -
12 Jun 2025
In remembering China’s Cultural Revolution, what you don’t know will hurt you
Forgetting the trauma of Mao’s chaotic decade serves Xi’s stability agenda, but personal experience shapes his authoritarian methods. -
12 Jun 2025
Australia-PNG relations at 50: Pride, politics and the price of partnership
What if more locals decide that Australia is rewarding bad behaviour at the top of PNG’s politics? -
12 Jun 2025
China banks big wins as Trump withdraws from global aid game
By abandoning climate finance and health initiatives, the United States is creating unprecedented opportunities for Chinese-led multilateral banks. -
11 Jun 2025
Australia’s royal dilemma as King Charles serves conflicting Commonwealth interests with Trump
If Australians found their sovereignty threatened, would people want an unelected septuagenarian Englishman representing their interests as head of state? -
11 Jun 2025
Taiwan’s Africa gambit
In a world where power is defined by networks rather than borders, Taipei’s quiet diplomacy is making headway. -
11 Jun 2025
With the G20 summit looming, South Africa wants Trump at the table
Ramaphosa is making a risky bet in a bid to progress an economic and development agenda the US President doesn’t believe in. -
10 Jun 2025
Beijing’s green mirage: How China drives environmental destruction abroad while claiming climate leadership at home
Massive commodity imports drive deforestation in Brazil and Indonesia even as domestic policies win international praise. -
10 Jun 2025
The logic of neutrality in the Indo-Pacific
Regional governments use deliberate ambiguity to extract benefits from both United States and China while avoiding costly commitments to either. -
10 Jun 2025
Before social media, there was shortwave: Lessons from the original information wars
There is nothing new in weaponising airwaves to shape hearts and minds across borders. -
10 Jun 2025
What lies beneath: Trump and the security of subsea cables
To access the riches under the sea, the new US administration seeks dominance. -
6 Jun 2025
Australia’s rental crisis at home also cost its reputation abroad
Migrants drawn by Australia’s inclusive image encounter discriminatory rental practices that damage the nation’s soft power. -
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6 Jun 2025
A scorecard for Australian aid
The measures of success with an OECD peer review about to get underway. -
6 Jun 2025
What the US could lose by closing its universities to China
A chance to influence America’s most important competitor for one thing – but that’s only the start. -
5 Jun 2025
The transactional worldview of South Korea’s new president
Lee Jae-myung’s pragmatic approach will test alliance limits with America and bring a more ambiguous stance toward China. -
5 Jun 2025
France seeks third way between US and China in Southeast Asia
The French leader sent a message of partnership but gave few concrete details on sustained engagement plans. -
5 Jun 2025
Ukraine’s cheap robot drones extract a heavy price from Russia
By pioneering tomorrow’s battlefield tactics, Kyiv is rewriting military doctrine and setting the template for future wars. -
5 Jun 2025
The battle Royal over the Dollar: What a currency means to the nation
The US dollar is under pressure. Australia could go it alone, at least in name. -
4 Jun 2025
How Papua New Guinea is rewriting Pacific education partnerships with China and more
District-led programs are driving a new demand for technical degrees and signalling a new agency in foreign relations. -
4 Jun 2025
Global trade: Why China can’t (and won’t) come to the rescue
Those looking for relief from US tariffs will run up against China’s mercantilism and structurally weak demand. -
4 Jun 2025
India’s concern could reshape Australia's Pakistan defence ties
It’s a good time for Canberra to reassess military cooperation with Islamabad given limited influence and competing Indo-Pacific priorities. -
4 Jun 2025
Keeping up with the Dutertes, a model Philippine political dynasty
The preservation of power within families makes for an unhealthy democracy. -
3 Jun 2025
Five years is a long time in Australia-India relations, but there is still more to do
A stocktake of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. -
3 Jun 2025
The case against ramping up Australia’s defence spending
It’s not about the money, it’s about strategy. -
3 Jun 2025
The tariff war that’s accelerating Asia’s trade transformation
As the deadline for suspension looms, regional economies are looking to patch the vulnerabilities of regional economic architecture. -
3 Jun 2025
No jacket required? Power dressing in world politics
From kurtas to the three-piece suit, what world leaders wear speaks volumes. -
3 Jun 2025
The real message Indonesia’s Prabowo Subianto delivered to China’s Li Qiang
Jakarta wants to find its own value from superpower competition without picking a winner.