Best of The Interpreter 2018: the revolving door at the Lodge
Another year, another Prime Minister, and more upheaval at home to distract Australia abroad.
Weekend catch-up: Australia’s new infrastructure bank and more
South Korea looks north, the Anglosphere and India & the Bougainville referendum: the week that was on The Interpreter.
We’re having a break: light publishing over the New Year
Best wishes for the season from all of us here at The Interpreter. Regular publishing will resume 7 January.
Was Jim Mattis really the “last adult in the room”?
Mattis said Trump deserves a defense secretary “whose views are better aligned with yours”. Does such a person exist?
Could Hanif Atmar become the next President of Afghanistan?
Seen as a cleanskin, Atmar would have a colossal job to convince international donors to keep up support.
Kovrig case casts pall over China research ties
The arrest of the Canadian researcher sends a chill China-watching communities around the world.
The debate over Australia stripping citizenship from terrorists
International law obligations and there is little evidence that revoking citizenship reduces the terrorist threat.
Bougainville’s Panguna – “a challenging opportunity”
Opportunities in Bougainville won’t be easily or quickly realised, and certainly not without community support.
What happens next? Trump’s sudden Syria exit
Exactly what “moving on” means will become apparent in the months ahead but such a rapid exit has obvious ramifications.
Economic diplomacy: how the world changed in 2018
The much-forecast arrival of geo-economics has seen an acceptance – and even a desire – for US-China tech competition.
Stepping up on Pacific infrastructure
The advantage of concessional loans is grant funding by Australia can be leveraged into a much larger amount.
The new US Africa strategy is not about Africa. It’s about China
A US Africa strategy should focus on US-Africa relations, not on China-Africa relations.
What I missed this year: America pushes back
There has been a clear shift in US thinking regarding China's long term trajectory.
Russian gas will not stop China’s air pollution
Current measures are clearly insufficient to drastically improve air quality.
Aid links: donor fatigue, poverty measures, Syrian camps, more
Links and stories from the aid and development sector.
How the conservative “Anglosphere” fell in love with India
Mistaken assumptions about Indian history is leading to profound misunderstandings about its foreign policy priorities.
Moon’s Eurasia: opening up North Korea, serving Seoul’s interests
South Korea has effectively been an island since the division of Korea, but Moon Jae-in has grand hopes for a change.
International law cannot save the rules-based order
Rising Chinese power is carving out a “geolegal” order, with reference to China, rather than international law, the key.
What I missed this year: Australia waking up to the Pacific
Lowy Institute experts look back on what surprised them in 2018
US-China tensions: is this about economics or security?
The challenge might seem to be China’s economic behaviour rather than old-fashioned power rivalry.
How much autonomy is too much when it comes to waging war?
The use of autonomous weapons in war raises concerns on humanitarian consequences and the application of law.
Responses to Australia’s Israel capital decision
How the world reacted to Scott Morrison’s decision to formally recognise West Jerusalem Israel’s capital.
Populism, poison, and The Party: the big stories of 2018
The year 2018 was a killer, here’s what came across The Interpreter’s desk.
Weekend catch-up: Huawei arrests and Australia’s Iran policy
Indian politics, drone warfare and encryption laws: the week that was on the Interpreter.
Collective Rage: Gilets Jaunes in France and elsewhere
Inordinate hatred coming from seemingly ordinary citizens is indicative of a wider trend – and a bleak European future.
Australia jostles over its Iran policy
The Jerusalem embassy debate has overshadowed a potential shift in Australia’s longstanding independent stance on Iran.
Answering the question: should South Korea accept refugees?
The arrival of hundreds of Yemeni asylum seekers in South Korea has produced a strange alliance in opposition.
What went wrong? Taiwan fails to legalise same-sex marriage
Foreign influence helped scupper a bid to be the first Asian nation to formally legalise gay marriage.
Playing the hostage card: the Meng Wanzhou & Michael Kovrig cases
China’s tit-for-tat diplomacy with Canada has a recent precedent, yet Donald Trump is hardly helping.
Competing shades of saffron in Indian politics
Recent strife in the city of Ayodhya must be seen as an omen of a shifting political agenda ahead of India’s elections.
Disruptors disrupted: Australia’s new encryption law
Law enforcement and technology companies are battling over the privacy implications of contentious new laws.
Meng Wanzhou: China’s “tantrum diplomacy” and Huawei
China’s technology firms are paying the price for its conduct.
The true cost of fast fashion
Moves by countries such as Australia to adopt modern slavery laws are a small start in tackling a big global problem.
Pacific links: call to close bases, deep sea struggles, more
Plus money for regional infrastructure, Fiji election results, and links from the Pacific islands region.
How Australia should deepen ties with India
From Kohli to coal exports, Australia is reconsidering India’s potential as a key economic and geopolitical partner.
US killing by drone: continuity and escalation
The US use of drones in “targeted killings” has grown under Donald Trump, continuing Barack Obama’s legacy.
Brexit deal debate reveals dark side to EU diplomacy
Reactions provoked by the mooted deal provide analysts with rich insight into some of the forces now at play in Europe.
Separating the Philippine state from the church
Filipino Catholic voters separate the Church from the State and uphold this in political practice.
Xi Jinping in 2018: Any closer to the truth?
Are we misinterpreting this figure and seeing a mirage of great power rather than the real thing?
Dimly lit renewable energy initiatives for the Pacific
Population, technical capacity and economies of scale stand in the way to renewable energy in the region.
China takes off for the Moon, tethered by politics at home
A special space mission would usually get blanket coverage, but the timing is awkward for Beijing to showcase science.
The distant fate of Russia’s Far East
Demonstrations in Vladivostok a decade ago were quelled, but an attitude of independence from faraway Moscow remains.
Weekend catch-up: Abe in Darwin, the Trump-Xi truce & more
Manus Island Naval base, Australia and Japan's anxiety, and Indian air pollution: The week that was on The Interpreter.
US-China competition is all about us
Everybody else will be the objects of China-US competition, called upon to make choices in favour of one or the other.
Indonesia has a stake in Australia’s Lombrum plans too
The Australian debate over the Lobrum naval base almost entirely ignores Indonesia.
Economic diplomacy: Mahathir, BRI and Payne
Australia's economic diplomacy agenda, the underestimated ASEAN Economic Community, and the indefinable Mahathir.
Steady but slow in Australia-Japan security cooperation
Abe’s recent visit to Darwin indicates that Canberra and Tokyo acknowledge the common security challenges they face.
Rap song sparks a gender conversation in South Korea
The lyrics criticise the #metoo movement and question why women aren’t required to enlist in the military.
Australia’s new foreign-influence laws: Who is targeted?
Australia is leading the democratic push-back against quiet intrusions from authoritarian states.