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Analysis
A vanity project or a sign of a broader shift? Battleships, cruisers and other large surface combatants
In a shock to many, naval powers are increasingly betting on bigger, more heavily armed surface combatants, from the proposed Trump Class battleships...
August 11 2026
The Pacific does not need another alignment test, it needs a veto map
Opinion: The Pacific does not need another test of strategic alignment. It needs the resilience and sovereign capability to say no without losing access to the essential...
August 10 2026
Deterrence, lethality and the pace of innovation: CDF Admiral Mark Hammond on innovating for survival in an unforgiving world
In a landmark address launching Australia’s 2026 Defence Innovation, Science and Technology Strategy, Chief of the Defence Force Admiral Mark Hammond AO RAN outlines how...
August 08 2026
What to expect when you’re expecting ... war: Just how prepared is Australia for the macro and micro realities of a conflict in our region?
As geopolitical fault lines continue to deepen across the Indo-Pacific, Australia faces its most perilous strategic environment since 1942. By drawing harsh lessons from...
August 07 2026
Australian adaptability: Ukraine’s drone war is changing warfare, can the ADF adapt fast enough to keep up?
Will the rapid evolution of uncrewed systems on the battlefields of Ukraine force the Australian Defence Force to rethink how it develops, acquires and sustains military...
August 06 2026
What I saw in Kyiv should change how every Western nation thinks about defence innovation
Opinion: Ukraine has demonstrated that speed, adaptation and industrial agility are now decisive military advantages. Australia must transform how it innovates before the...
August 05 2026
Australia has a strategy of denial: Now it needs a strategy of design
Opinion: Australia has invested heavily in a strategy of denial to deter conflict and resist coercion. But if Canberra is serious about shaping the Indo-Pacific, it must move...
August 04 2026
The end of an era v the age of empires: Is our ‘stewardship’ of the rules-based order a fool’s errand?
Australia and like-minded middle powers have long celebrated and communicated their investment in and commitment to maintaining the post-Second World War “rules-based...
August 03 2026
Fresh engagement with Singapore and Japan signals ongoing effort to achieve regional stability
Australia’s defensive relationship with allies in Asia has fostered a supportive and collaborative environment, recently reaffirmed through engagements with Japan and...
August 01 2026
Ukraine keeps captured North Korean soldiers in custody as questions remain over their future
Opinion: Ukraine is holding captured North Korean soldiers despite South Korea’s offer to accept them, creating a diplomatic and legal dilemma that highlights Pyongyang’s...
July 30 2026
Another one bites the dust: Navy’s LOSVs go the way of the dodo, raising questions about up-gunning Hunter fleet
From the get-go, the ambitious plans for the Royal Australian Navy to acquire a fleet of “large optionally crewed surface vessels” (LOSVs) to boost the fleet’s...
July 30 2026
AUKUS: The strategy for a bygone era
Opinion: Former Australian diplomat Russell Rollason AM, in responding to Assistant Minister for Defence Peter Khalil MP, argues that the government has yet to make a...
July 29 2026
Tech talk: Luckey discusses Ghost Shark, artificial intelligence and facial recognition in defence
American entrepreneur Palmer Luckey has put forward his thoughts on the development of Australia’s Ghost Shark, the global leadership of artificial intelligence, creation...
July 28 2026
A new era of Defence may be on the horizon for Australian women
Right now, women in defence are under-represented, but new leadership changes might inspire the next generation of Australian women to protect our nation as warfighters,...
July 23 2026
Colby slap down strengthens case for ‘middle power strategy’, but it will only be as strong as the sum of its parts
When Pentagon policy lead Elbridge Colby recently gave the idea of a cohesive “middle power strategy” the slap down, many thought it would effectively end all debate...
July 23 2026
Uncrewed underwater vehicles set to challenge ‘status quo’ of naval warfare
Opinion: I was giving a classified brief to a senior UK officer two weeks ago on what our Speartooth large uncrewed undersea vehicle (LUUV) will be capable of in the next six...
July 23 2026
Apathy at our own peril: Polling reveals growing segment of Australian society unfazed by Beijing's provocations, threat
Just weeks following the successful test launch of nuclear-capable ballistic missile in our region, new polling has revealed a growing number of Australians are unfazed by...
July 22 2026
Get used to it: Former ambassador warns Australia to expect more Chinese power projection close to home
With China seeming to have “locked down” hegemony in Eurasia, its focus will inevitably turn to the wider Indo-Pacific. For Australia’s former ambassador to Beijing,...
July 21 2026
Beyond Defence: Lessons in innovation from across industry
Opinion: Australia’s Chief Defence Scientist, Professor Tanya Monro AC, has challenged industry to build the resilience, adaptability and partnerships needed to strengthen...
July 20 2026
When the missile is the message: China’s patient campaign to make the unacceptable routine
Opinion: In 1945, in the first free election Hungary had ever held, the communists lost, and badly. The Independent Smallholders’ Party took 57 per cent of the vote; the...
July 18 2026