Skip to main content
The Interpreter

Interpreter - Menu Links

  • Articles
  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • About

Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 11 Sep 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Ukraine has Moscow in its crosshairs but that shouldn’t make us squeamish

    Tennyson Dearing
    Don’t be fooled by Putin’s bluster. Giving Russia impunity by limiting destruction to Ukraine is no way to win the war.
  • 5 Sep 2023
    • Australia in the World
    • Australian Defence Force
    • Defence & Security
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Technology

    Danger Will Robinson: Warfighting robots fast approaching

    Peter Layton
    A swarm of angry Australian-made cardboard attack drones sets the scene for all future conflicts.
  • 30 Aug 2023
    • Europe
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • International law
    • United Nations
    • War Crimes

    Europe’s last war

    Ian Kemish
    Remembering the Bosnian conflict of 30 years ago to compare how the world responds to Russia’s war on Ukraine today.
  • 17 Aug 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    The Baltic response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

    Adam Simpson
    A history of atrocities at the hands of Moscow steels the resolve of its neighbouring states.
  • 10 Aug 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Review

    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.
  • 2 Aug 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Moscow, we have a problem

    Angela G. Palmer
    Once useful mouthpieces, Russian military bloggers reporting from the front lines in Ukraine are now making the Kremlin nervous.
  • 28 Jul 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Exploring an end game in Ukraine? Not yet

    Ian Hill
    Moves towards negotiations are risky and could be interpreted by Putin as a sign of weakening Western resolve.
  • 25 Jul 2023
    • Defence & Security
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • International law

    Cluster munitions: A necessary defensive strategy for Ukraine

    Munira Mustaffa
    It is Russia, not Ukraine, abusing international principles. The law must not obstruct Ukraine to fight back.
  • 19 Jul 2023
    • Central Asia
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Trade

    Why China tripled its heavy truck shipments to Central Asia: Unravelling the influence of Russia’s war in Ukraine

    Joseph Webster
    A sharp spike in overall exports to the region appears to provide Beijing a pathway to indirectly support the Kremlin’s war effort.
  • 19 Jul 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Trade
    • United Nations
    • Türkiye

    Why the Black Sea Grain Initiative must be restored

    John Denton
    The collapse of a deal integral to world food security will imperil millions of lives.
  • 13 Jul 2023
    • Central Asia
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Putin is Xi’s useful idiot

    Ben Scott
    In the geopolitical tussle between superpowers, Russia pays the price and China reaps the benefits.
  • 12 Jul 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Türkiye

    How long can Putin’s “special relationship” with Erdoğan last?

    Nikola Mikovic
    Despite mutterings about a Turkish “stab in the back”, Russia needs Türkiye – Putin’s reign may depend on it.
  • 11 Jul 2023
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Beijing’s bad bet on Moscow

    Ved Shinde
    The collapse of the Putin regime is something China wants to avoid. A weak Kremlin is better than a headless one.
  • 6 Jul 2023
    • Australia
    • Diplomacy
    • Ukraine

    Australia’s absent ambassador must return to Ukraine

    Dave Sharma
    If the PM won’t provide more than a few military off-casts in support, sending back the top envoy should be an easy step.
  • 3 Jul 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Unleashing chaos: Nova Kakhovka Dam destruction threatens global food security

    Genevieve Donnellon-May
    The collapse of critical hydroelectric infrastructure will have devastating knock-on effects for Europe’s breadbasket.
  • 26 Jun 2023
    • Australia
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Public Opinion

    Australians stand with Ukraine – but attention won’t last indefinitely

    Elizabeth Buchanan
    The latest Lowy Poll should be a warning about the risk of not debating the end goal in a conflict.
  • 26 Jun 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Prigozhin’s mutiny: What does it mean for Putin – and Russia?

    Ian Hill
    A bizarre and audacious rebellion by the Kremlin’s own hired mercenaries has irrevocably weakened the regime.
  • 24 Jun 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    What does Wagner’s revolt mean for the future of Russia?

    Matthew Sussex
    The most serious challenge to Putin’s authority yet – even if crushed – has already done significant harm to the elite structures of the Russian Federation.
  • 22 Jun 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: Why and why now?

    Ian Hill
    Putin’s desire to bring Ukraine back into the fold is mired in imperial nostalgia and bitter resentment.
  • 20 Jun 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • United Kingdom
    • Syria

    Chemical weapons: Impunity is killing deterrence

    Joel Keep
    Poisoning continues as a favoured form of invisible warfare meted out by dictators and autocrats, with horrific results.
  • 23 May 2023
    • Australia
    • Terrorism
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • International law
    • War Crimes
    • Africa

    It’s time Australia branded Russia’s Wagner Group a terrorist organisation

    Isabella Currie , Matthew Sussex
    A record of abuses in conflicts from Ukraine to Africa makes designating the Russian group the right choice.
  • 22 May 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is spurring a transition of global order

    Ian Hill
    We’re only beginning to grasp the far-reaching ramifications from escalating tensions and economic disruptions caused by Moscow’s belligerence.
  • 15 May 2023
    • Afghanistan
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Iran
    • Saudi Arabia

    China to the rescue, with peace plans for Saudi, Iran, Russia, Ukraine and Afghanistan – up to a point

    Henry Storey
    These diplomatic gambits all carry a message. But conflict resolution isn’t necessarily the main one.
  • 12 Apr 2023
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    What does China want in Ukraine?

    Ved Shinde
    Beijing has reservations about Putin’s war, but seeing Moscow take a beating is not in China’s interests.
  • 5 Apr 2023
    • Myanmar
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Human rights
    • International law
    • War Crimes

    What of the Rohingya? The ICC, Ukraine, and limits of “international” justice

    Aakash Chandran , Jennifer Keene-McCann , Emma Palmer
    The International Criminal Court will always be seen as a selective tool unless states agree to decide cases on need.
  • 5 Apr 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Russia’s shifting far right: the war party

    Oleg Ignatov
    A powerful conservative movement in Moscow dictates that Russia only wins if an independent Ukraine ceases to exist.
  • 4 Apr 2023
    • India
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • United States

    To help end war in Ukraine, the Quad should back India to engage Russia

    Adarsh Badri
    India might be accused of playing both sides but also has the special relationships to lead a push towards a settlement.
  • 29 Mar 2023
    • Japan
    • Japan's Economy
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Sustainability

    Japan feels the pinch as fertiliser costs soar thanks to Russia’s war

    Yusaku Yoshikawa
    The country has for too long relied on foreign sources without cultivating domestic alternatives.
  • 14 Mar 2023
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Will China really funnel weapons to Russia through Belarus?

    Nikola Mikovic
    With war on his doorstep, the Belarusian president is juggling Beijing and Moscow to reap the benefits of geography.
  • 3 Mar 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Why does Putin persist?

    Ian Hill
    For all his mistakes, the Russian leader knows the objectives of Ukraine and its Western backers don’t exactly coincide. 
  • 24 Feb 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Russia has already lost. The next year will decide if Ukraine can win

    Bermet Talant
    A revitalised NATO and unflagging Western support will help, but it is still up to Ukraine to defeat the Russian army.
  • 22 Feb 2023
    • China
    • Europe
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Wang Yi’s fruitless diplomacy in Europe

    Michael Clarke
    Beijing misunderstands that Russia’s war in Ukraine – and China’s failure to condemn it – has vastly changed views.
  • 22 Feb 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • War Crimes

    Russia in Ukraine: accountability and global order on the precipice

    Melinda Rankin
    Not since the Second World War has international security been so inseparably tied to the prosecution of atrocity crimes.
  • 14 Feb 2023
    • North Korea
    • South Korea
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Why North Korea is denying its involvement in Russia’s war in Ukraine

    Khang Vu
    Pyongyang appears to be a reluctant participant in Putin’s brutal offensive in Eastern Europe.
  • 13 Feb 2023
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Ukraine needs tanks – Australia should send some

    Dave Sharma
    The war is entering a new phase and our support needs to keep pace with developments on the ground.
  • 9 Feb 2023
    • Asia
    • Asean
    • China
    • India
    • Laos
    • North Korea
    • Sri Lanka
    • Thailand
    • Vietnam
    • Defence & Security
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • United Nations

    With caution and tact: How Asian countries voted on Ukraine at the UN 

    Stéphanie Fillion
    A resolution forces nations to show their hand. After Russia’s invasion, consistency has not been to everyone’s liking.
  • 3 Feb 2023
    • Central Asia
    • Caucasus
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Russia, Ukraine and the wars of the Soviet succession

    Ian Hill
    Putin’s war is part of the untidy and slow-motion disintegration of the Soviet Union.
  • 12 Jan 2023
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • International law
    • War Crimes

    The hard road to justice for Russian war crimes

    Shaun Cameron
    Prosecution of war crimes in Ukraine are crucial to maintain international law and the peace and security it promotes.
  • 23 Dec 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Review

    How to Interpret 2022: Russia invades Ukraine

    Clare Caldwell
    Vladimir Putin seemed convinced Kyiv would fall in days. We look back at ten months of war.
  • 22 Dec 2022
    • Malaysia
    • Philippines
    • Defence & Security
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Administration

    The Interpreter 2022: Your most-read articles

    The Interpreter
    Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominated the year. But readers also wanted to know all about Southeast Asia’s elections.  
  • 20 Dec 2022
    • Ukraine

    Zelenskyy: when the “Lion of Kyiv” addressed the Lowy Institute

    Michael Fullilove
    The anatomy of an interview with a wartime president.
  • 19 Dec 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Christmas in Ukraine: hope, defiance, determination

    Mateo Szlapek-Sewillo
    Celebrating under a shadow cast by war.
  • 13 Dec 2022
    • Europe
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Trade
    • Global Issues
    • Climate change
    • Coronavirus
    • Environment
    • Transnational Challenges
    • The Americas

    2022: A global turning point

    Ian Hill
    Looking at trends and contours that have coalesced this year to make international politics more contested and unpredictable.
  • 21 Nov 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Ukraine: No end in sight

    Ian Hill
    A ceasefire proposal would likely be rejected as a Russian ploy, yet with winter closing, neither side can expect let up.
  • 9 Nov 2022
    • Asean
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Trade
    • United States

    Countdown to Asia’s summit season

    Susannah Patton
    Conflict in Myanmar and Ukraine against a backdrop of US‑China tension – a crowded agenda will unfold in coming weeks.
  • 19 Oct 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    The banality of Putin’s evil

    Robert Horvath
    Putin is driven by the imperatives of regime security – preserving his kleptocratic rule – not national security.
  • 17 Oct 2022
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Could China save the world?

    Mark Beeson
    It is difficult to imagine Xi Jinping brokering peace in Ukraine, but if China wants to be respected, this is a chance.
  • 12 Oct 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    If Russia breaks the nuclear taboo

    Robert Ayson
    Would the use of a lower yield atomic weapon really prompt the same catastrophic logic of escalation?
  • 25 Sep 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Ukraine conflict: turning point?

    Ian Hill
    Putin’s new escalatory threats and the near-existential battle for Russia and its president.
  • 20 Sep 2022
    • Central Asia
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    The war in Ukraine is pushing Central Asia away from Russia

    Bermet Talant
    Russia’s loss has been China’s gain.
Pagination
  • Previous page ‹ Previous
  • Current page 1
  • Page 2
  • Page 3
  • Next page ››

Stay informed with the latest commentary and analysis on international events from experts at the Lowy Institute and around the world.

Register

The Interpreter features in-depth analysis & expert commentary on the latest international events, published daily by the Lowy Institute.

© Copyright 2023 Lowy Institute

  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • Articles
  • About
  • Terms of Use
  • Site map
  • My Admin
  • Log In