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  • 16 May 2022
    • Sustainability
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • Cambodia
    • Thailand
    • Vietnam
    • Laos
    • Environment

    Diplomacy is indispensable to manage the Mekong

    Anoulak Kittikhoun
    The goal of a healthy river won’t be helped by misreading the shared mission of the Mekong River Commission.
  • 13 May 2022
    • Australia in the World

    Payne v Wong: The foreign policy election debate 

    Sam Roggeveen
  • 13 May 2022
    • Philippines

    What a Marcos Jr presidency in the Philippines means for geopolitics

    Adele Webb
    A policy-free campaign in Asia’s oldest democracy results in a guessing game in the region for where next.
  • 13 May 2022
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • China's Government
    • China

    China and the West: It’s about understanding each other 

    Aaron Mc Nicholas
    The former Australian prime minister offers indispensable insights into how to go back to relationship basics.  
  • 12 May 2022
    • Trade
    • Indonesia

    A flash in the pan? Indonesia’s palm oil export ban

    Johannes Nugroho
    Apparent domestic shortages appear more a case of a government stand-off with industry over pricing.
  • 12 May 2022
    • Australia

    Bell teals for big parties in Australia’s election

    Greg Earl
    The traditional two-party political cycle is being disrupted by the rise of independent candidates from right and left.
  • 11 May 2022
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australian Diplomacy

    Resetting Australia’s relationship with the Pacific – three ideas

    Anna Gibert
    Listen, for a start. Getting down to granular, person-to-person engagement is needed for effective regional diplomacy.
  • 11 May 2022
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    The case for rejuvenating DFAT

    Justin Brown
    Foreign ministries no longer monopolise a country’s global voice. But some practical fine tuning will enhance diplomacy.
  • 11 May 2022
    • China – Belt and Road Initiative
    • Development Assistance
    • Southeast Asia
    • Poverty

    Mapping Southeast Asian development assistance

    Teesta Prakash , Alexandre Dayant
    A new measure of foreign aid impact in countries hit by Covid and infrastructure failure is set to fill the gap.
  • 10 May 2022
    • Papua New Guinea
    • Sex and Gender

    Where are the women? The challenge facing the next PNG parliament

    Teddy Winn
    A country ranking among the world’s lowest for political participation by women has enormous social bias to overcome.
  • 10 May 2022
    • United States
    • China
    • Saudi Arabia

    Saudi Arabia and China: a blossoming friendship

    Evan Freidin
    Relations are cosy for now. But is Saudi Arabia hedging its bets between Beijing and Washington?
  • 10 May 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • Pacific Islands
    • Australia
    • China
    • Solomon Islands

    Chinese bases in the Pacific: A reality check

    Sam Roggeveen
    Frustrating Beijing’s ambitions to create a sphere of influence is overwhelmingly a diplomatic task, not a military one.
  • 9 May 2022
    • Syria
    • Russia
    • Turkey
    • Ukraine

    Turkey’s leverage over Russia – in Syria and beyond

    Nikola Mikovic
    Ankara and Moscow are in an unusual power play where the Kremlin turns a blind eye to actions that aid its adversaries.
  • 9 May 2022
    • Australia's Trade
    • Australia's Economy
    • European Union
    • United Kingdom
    • France

    The time is right for Australia to forge stronger ties with Europe

    Mateo Szlapek-Sewillo
    A new world has created new opportunities in energy, security and diplomacy that Canberra should grab without delay.
  • 6 May 2022
    • United States
    • Iran's Nuclear Program
    • Iran

    Iran applies its own maximum pressure in nuclear talks

    Prabhat Jawla
    With negotiations seemingly deadlocked, the Biden administration’s hopes for a major foreign policy win appear dashed.
  • 6 May 2022
    • United States
    • Review

    Understanding the rise of Trump – and how it might happen again

    Erin Hurley
    Fixing America’s broken electoral system means understanding how elites crafted self-serving rules and procedures.
  • 6 May 2022
    • Asylum Seekers
    • Afghanistan War
    • Australian immigration
    • Afghanistan
    • Human rights

    Australia can stand up for the Afghan people, and the time is now

    Ahmad Shuja Jamal
    Canberra should signal to the world that we’re all better off in a community of nations where human dignity matters.
  • 5 May 2022
    • Trade
    • Australia's Trade
    • IMF
    • Asean
    • Australia

    Economic diplomacy: Trade shifts challenge a new government

    Greg Earl
    “Friendshoring” offers a half-way house between reshoring production and diversifying markets in a deglobalising world.
  • 5 May 2022
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    Scott Morrison wins. So where to next for Australia in the world?

    Hugh Piper
    A returned Coalition government faces immediate headaches (and opportunities) in its foreign policy.
  • 5 May 2022
    • Australia
    • Energy

    Energy security: Embracing technological neutrality

    Michael de Percy , John Poljak
    Governments should set but not dictate energy standards. That includes allowing nuclear back on the negotiation table.
  • 4 May 2022
    • Singapore

    Death penalty: Singapore’s growing abolition movement

    Kirsten Han
    Public support for capital punishment isn’t as overwhelming and unshakeable as the government often portrays it to be.
  • 4 May 2022
    • Timor-Leste

    Three takeaways from Timor‑Leste’s presidential election

    Parker Novak
    And three questions about what’s next.
  • 4 May 2022
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • North Korea

    For North Korea, military parades come before the people’s wellbeing

    Khang Vu
    There is no mask over the regime’s true intentions.
  • 3 May 2022
    • Russia
    • European Union
    • Ukraine

    European neutrality is dying out

    Daniel Woker
    Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has transformed future security policy arrangements to Russia’s detriment.
  • 3 May 2022
    • China
    • Coronavirus
    • Human rights

    Shanghai lockdown prompts collective action

    Jennifer Hsu
    China’s citizens are finding increasingly creative ways to make their voices heard during the pandemic.
  • 3 May 2022
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    Imagining Labor’s first 100 days in foreign policy

    Hugh Piper
    It’s 22 May. And although Anthony Albanese is yet to get his feet under the desk, priorities are already piling up.
  • 2 May 2022
    • Australia
    • China
    • Solomon Islands
    • Sex and Gender

    Solomon Islands-China security pact: A feminist foreign policy answer

    Joanna Pradela
    For Australia to change the game in regional relations, it needs to grapple with new rules about systems of power.
  • 2 May 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Transnistria: The next front of the Ukraine war

    David Brewster
    Moscow is stirring tensions in a separatist region in neighbouring Moldova, but its moves may backfire.
  • 2 May 2022
    • Afghanistan
    • Pakistan

    Drones do the talking in Pakistan’s anti-terror offensive

    Syed Fazl-e-Haider
    Islamabad is tired of waiting for Afghanistan’s Taliban to control the TTP who have found safe haven across the border.
  • 29 Apr 2022
    • Technology

    Musk’s Twitter: Tweet freedom for Asia?

    JJ Rose
    The tech billionaire should brace for more than keyboard warriors in a world of authoritarianism and eroding democracy.
  • 29 Apr 2022
    • War Crimes
    • Russia
    • International law
    • Ukraine

    Putting Putin on trial to enforce a price for the powerful

    Shivangi Seth
    Building a just international order must go beyond the interest of a few to foster a true test of global accountability.
  • 28 Apr 2022
    • Sex and Gender

    Southeast Asia: Gender parity is not gender equality

    Meg Hocking
    Overcoming the root causes of the gender gap means tackling harmful stereotypes and biases, country by country.
  • 28 Apr 2022
    • Indonesia

    What is at stake with new provinces in West Papua?

    Eduard Lazarus
    Jakarta’s plan to break West Papua into five provinces from the existing two leaves an even larger military footprint.
  • 27 Apr 2022
    • Timor-Leste

    Timor-Leste: The new president needs to tune in

    Joao da Cruz Cardoso
    In the battle for leadership, an integral part of good governance has been overlooked: listening to the people.
  • 27 Apr 2022
    • Energy

    When the tank’s empty: Australia’s impoverished energy security

    Christian Downie
    Reliance on foreign oil and fuel-hungry cars puts the country in a vulnerable position, even when there’s no crisis.
  • 26 Apr 2022
    • Australia and the Pacific
    • Solomon Islands

    Fixing Australia’s failing Pacific Step-up strategy

    Peter Layton
    Supporting domestic interest groups in the region will bring success, and should be high on Canberra’s “to do” list.
  • 26 Apr 2022
    • United States
    • China
    • Russia
    • Vietnam

    Vietnam’s “Four No’s” of defence policy are being tested

    Huynh Tam Sang
    The war in Ukraine has forced Hanoi into a delicate dance between Russia and the United States.
  • 25 Apr 2022
    • Southeast Asia
    • Maritime Security

    Not all maritime disputes are built the same

    Evan A Laksmana
    Resolving some of the South China Sea’s longest running issues needs a policy toolkit that is customised and diverse.
  • 25 Apr 2022
    • Administration

    We’re taking a break

    The Interpreter
    Our analysis and commentary on the latest international events returns after the public holiday.
  • 22 Apr 2022
    • China
    • Australia
    • Solomon Islands

    Solomons: How Australia stacks up in a China aid bidding war

    Alexandre Dayant
    Lowy Institute’s Pacific Aid Map reveals the true scope of Australia’s development assistance to the region.
  • 22 Apr 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • International law
    • United Nations
    • War Crimes

    Even Putin is not beyond the law

    Donald R Rothwell
    International and domestic justice systems are working in the background to bring accountability in the war on Ukraine.
  • 22 Apr 2022
    • China
    • India
    • Pakistan
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    India-Russia: A friend in need

    Christopher Snedden 
    New Delhi’s reluctance to speak out on Ukraine is also influenced by own ambition in the disputed Kashmir region.
  • 22 Apr 2022
    • Defence & Security

    Does commemorating war really promote peace?

    Ned Dobos
    Contrary to popular belief, reminiscing on past sacrifices actually increases the perceived value of future combat.
  • 21 Apr 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • Australia
    • China
    • Solomon Islands
    • Climate change

    Solomons security pact: Sogavare, China, and Australia

    Peter Hooton
    There is no shutting China out of the South Pacific, but if Australia gets real on climate the game will truly change.
  • 21 Apr 2022
    • Global Economy
    • G20
    • IMF
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Economic diplomacy: After Ukraine, the IMF ponders the future

    Greg Earl
    A decoupling world will still need an old-style cooperative rescue service to repair the economic minefields.
  • 21 Apr 2022
    • Russia
    • Ukraine

    Rallying around the flag: Domestic support for Putin is holding up

    Ian Hill
    Russians doubt what they are told about the Ukraine conflict yet their view is still shaped by relentless propaganda.
  • 21 Apr 2022
    • Trade
    • Australia
    • India

    A first for India and a chance to trade up with Australia

    Amita Batra
    The new trade deal should be a stepping stone for the two countries to make their economic partnership comprehensive.
  • 20 Apr 2022
    • Global Issues
    • Sustainability
    • Russia
    • Sri Lanka
    • Ukraine

    Russia-Ukraine: It always comes down to food

    Vani Swarupa Murali
    War in eastern Europe is devastating the supply of staple goods to distant regions that can least afford it.
  • 20 Apr 2022
    • Australia's Trade
    • Australia's Economy
    • Asean
    • Australia and Asia

    Strategic divergence: Australia’s Southeast Asia challenge

    Susannah Patton
    Australia’s next government needs to find ways to relate to the region that don’t depend on geopolitical alignment.
  • 20 Apr 2022
    • War Crimes
    • Russia
    • Human rights
    • International law
    • Ukraine

    The duty to prevent genocide in Ukraine

    Juliette McIntyre , Dominique Fraser
    A serious risk of Russia committing genocide imposes legal obligations for states to do what they can to stop it.
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