10 Dec 2024 A wonky memento and a China metaphor Sam Roggeveen A scale model kit offers an insight into Chinese manufacturing.
5 Dec 2024 Loyalty over competence: A historical novel for the modern age Mercedes Page Malcolm Knox’s dark comedy about power and paranoia in Stalin’s Russia carries an enduring wisdom.
3 Dec 2024 What should world leaders read? Mark Pierce Unlike polls and social media, the classics teach humility.
30 Oct 2024 The Translator: What is "strategic infrastructure"? Laura Salt Building lines of influence in the Pacific.
17 Sep 2024 The Translator: What is “economic statecraft”? Melissa Conley Tyler The power of carrots and sticks in the world of geoeconomics.
8 Aug 2024 A reckoning with empire Ved Shinde Two very different volumes on the legacies of imperialism expose the parallax of coloniser and colonised.
2 Aug 2024 Shots around the world: The influence of assassins on international affairs Mark Pierce Leaders are always going to be hard to protect, especially if demonstrating a common touch means touching commoners.
24 Jul 2024 Shakespeare as life coach Mark Pierce Two new books examine how the Bard’s wit and wisdom can serve as guides for modern day policy and prophecy.
4 Jul 2024 Eyes on India Mark Pierce The burdens of history should not be confused with sentimentalism in forging a modern relationship.
19 Jun 2024 How to broaden the political gene pool Mark Pierce With the United Kingdom headed for the polls, Alastair Campbell has a few suggestions on what makes a good leader.
7 Jun 2024 The forgotten weapon of mass destruction Huma Rehman Preventing the spread of unconventional tools of warfare requires constant vigilance.
30 May 2024 Fibs, squibs, and trading digs Justin Brown Is it any wonder the public is often bemused about the merits of trade policy?
23 May 2024 The month the world changed Mark Pierce New research brings a valuable insight into the role of people not usually seen or heard in stories of war.
10 May 2024 Noble Rushdie will not be silenced Mark Pierce Physically, Rushdie will never be the same after his attack. But as a writer, he is back.
30 Apr 2024 The God in the rubble Marcus Colla Germany’s struggle with morality is not only a concern of history but an animating factor in contemporary politics.
19 Apr 2024 Girt by sea: Redrawing Australia’s mental map David Brewster A big part of the challenge is asking the hard questions – and a new book does just that.
17 Apr 2024 Telling tales about “Civil War” Sam Roggeveen Politics isn’t the only strange omission from what is undoubtedly a captivating and relentless movie spectacle.
9 Apr 2024 Life on Earth: From beginning to end Mark Pierce A new take on the history of the world starts 3.8 billion years ago and offers conclusions about our future.
8 Apr 2024 India's turbulent history newly revealed Ved Shinde Two recent history books that improve our understanding of India's present
26 Mar 2024 Opium and the colonial narco-state Mark Pierce In an attempt to control 19th century trade with India and China, Britain dumped tea and resorted to a new addictive drug.
15 Mar 2024 What price sanctions? John West When trade is made a weapon, the target isn’t always hit.
7 Mar 2024 Spy novels and unicorn hunting Mark Pierce Seeking perfection among the dead ends, red herrings and lost causes, a lover of espionage lists the must-haves.
29 Feb 2024 When war-planning and politics collide Erin Hurley The rhythms of the electoral cycle are too often overlooked in the conduct of conflict.
22 Feb 2024 Words as weapons in the war of ideas Mark Pierce A new book explores the power of literature on history's battlefields.
13 Feb 2024 How to fix Japan John West Embracing the lost art of “creative destruction” will allow the once booming economy to flourish again.
29 Jan 2024 Why big projects fail: Climate change and AUKUS submarines Stephen Grenville Construction lessons – from the Empire State to the Sydney Opera House – can inform Australia’s most pressing problems.
15 Jan 2024 Manager of the internet, controller of the world? Sam Roggeveen Power is much more than GDP and tank numbers. But the US monopoly on the digital age is eroding.
3 Jan 2024 Why do we travel to unsettling places? Melissa Conley Tyler Whether the DMZ or sites of historic atrocities, place carries a connection to remind us of the precariousness of life.
21 Dec 2023 Manila’s killing fields: Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on the poor Richard Javad Heydarian It’s best to not only take populists seriously, but also literally, especially when they threaten mass murder.
13 Dec 2023 The Fix: Nationalist theatre, with a twist Evan Freidin An action film where the climax features a gritty anti-hero urging the importance of an informed vote? Watch and learn.
11 Dec 2023 Espionage top ten Milton Cockburn From George Smiley to Jackson Lamb, the best spy fiction relies not on heroes but masters of the plot.
6 Dec 2023 The Fix: A death in Malta Jim Nolan Uncovering the murky business of corruption and graft too often puts journalists’ lives at risk.
6 Dec 2023 Tales from the magic circle Marcus Colla A new book explores how post-war Europe’s waves of counterculture and activism transformed the notion of revolution.
29 Nov 2023 The Fix: Simple history is never simplistic Mark Pierce Your weekly Interpreter feature about issues, resources and helpful distractions that might otherwise be missed.
8 Nov 2023 The Fix: Escape banality, shun labels Ved Shinde Your weekly Interpreter feature about issues, resources or helpful distractions that might otherwise be missed.
1 Nov 2023 The Fix: An evolving Saudi Arabia Gabriela Bernal Your weekly Interpreter feature about issues, resources or helpful distractions that might otherwise be missed.
26 Oct 2023 A Marshall Plan for Ukraine? John West History can be a useful guide, but the geopolitical circumstances of today are vastly different.
23 Oct 2023 War crimes: The trial of a fallen French war hero and lessons for today Mark Pierce When can personal responsibility be dissolved into collective culpability?
13 Oct 2023 Imagining Trump’s second term Mark Pierce Could Canada cope? Might Australia? Two books on the “vice in the chest and tightness in the stomach” prospect.
29 Sep 2023 The decline of Europe: “Rage, rage, against the dying of the light” Mark Pierce From the early signs of decay to the recent downwards turn, Europe’s trajectory is captured with pen and voice.
28 Sep 2023 AUKUS: A debate after the fact is still worth having Georgina Downer Can Australia’s statecraft and alliances offer alternative security options in the Indo-Pacific?
21 Sep 2023 Plumbing the depths of the former East Germany’s grotesque delusion Mark Pierce A mostly unsentimental new memoir of life in the GDR ruminates on the what-ifs.
8 Sep 2023 Boris Johnson: Does distance really lend enchantment to the view? Mark Pierce A recent biography on the former PM reveals a man short on dignity and gravitas, and afraid to make the hard decisions.
29 Aug 2023 A compelling voice for rethinking Australia’s national security Gareth Evans Sam Roggeveen’s Echidna Strategy rightly challenges Australia to act as a diplomatic powerhouse, not a military one.
11 Aug 2023 Learning Cold War lessons of espionage anew Ben Scott The ever-present threat of spies can lead to the greater danger – ourselves.
10 Aug 2023 Fake news, propaganda, and the withering of commitment to truth Mark Pierce Joseph Stalin’s denial of access for Western journalists during the Second World War heralded the birth of disinformation.
28 Jul 2023 Far from the limelight, forgotten Afghans continue the fight Melissa Jardine Accounts from Kabul hold lessons on how easily the world moves on, and some takeaways for Ukraine.