Analysis

Laser capabilities expand into space and defence communications
Laser communications is a growing facet of contemporary connection, with Australia leading the global acceleration of this emerging technology.
May 07 2026
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The new strategic arithmetic: Australia, Japan come together to navigate the coming storm
Despite a rocky past, the rapidly deteriorating global environment is strengthening the Australia–Japan relationship, as birds of a feather flock together, but more will...
May 06 2026
Opposition calls for Raider consideration as it opens some exciting doors, if we’re brave enough to knock
When opposition defence spokesman Senator James Paterson called for Australia to consider the B-21 Raider, it wasn’t anything new, but the idea not only has merit, it also...
May 05 2026
Time for some self-respect? Expert warns Australia can’t be too keen on US alliance
The increasing unpredictability of the United States as the nation’s primary security benefactor has reignited calls from an expert for Australia to have a little more...
May 04 2026
What would an ADF that spends 2.5% or 3% of GDP actually look like?
With all the talk around the level of defence spending as a percentage of GDP, I thought I would run an interesting thought experiment: ask AI what a credible middle power...
May 02 2026
‘Anemoia’, social cohesion, economic security and national resilience in the era of great-power competition
Generations of Australians aren’t just disillusioned, they’re done. Done with a system that ignores them, a dream that was sold out from under them, and leaders who never...
May 01 2026
Australia’s manufacturing problem is not capability, it’s control
Opinion: Australia’s manufacturing problem is not capability. It is control.
April 30 2026
Honouring sacrifice: Taking ourselves seriously is the least we can do
Anzac Day is widely held as the most sacred day in Australia’s national calendar. A day when the country comes together to commemorate the sacrifice of the nation’s best...
April 28 2026
An outdated insurance policy: Do the NDS and IIP skew towards over-reliance on the US?
Australia’s alliance with the United States has long underpinned our prosperity, security and stability, but the National Defence Strategy (NDS) and Integrated Investment...
April 27 2026
The NDS, the law of the jungle and the world as it is
It is becoming increasingly clear that the old world order is dead and the once unassailable “rules-based order” is collapsing before our eyes, only to be replaced by...
April 24 2026
Behind the hoopla, the government is leaving our military badly underequipped in the drone era
Opinion: The government’s headline $7 billion counter-drone plan is largely smoke and mirrors, spreading funds over a decade into legacy systems while leaving Australia...
April 23 2026
Is Australian soft power losing currency in a rapidly hardening world?
It’s been called the collapse of the global rules-based order.
April 22 2026
‘Radical reset’ or just more of the same? Discerning the competing narratives around the 2026 NDS and IIP
Depending on who you ask, the 2026 National Defence Strategy (NDS) and 2026 Integrated Investment Program (IIP) are either examples of “more of the same” or a “radical...
April 21 2026
Industry expresses mixed views on 2026 National Defence Strategy
The 2026 National Defence Strategy has been welcomed with mixed reviews from industry leaders and defence strategists, with both critiques and praises coming through.
April 20 2026
National Defence Strategy 2026: Spending on military cyber capability to reach at least $15bn
The Australian government’s latest defence blueprint beds in cyber as a key warfighting capability – here’s the breakdown from the latest iteration of our main defence...
April 17 2026
National Defence Strategy 2026: What’s in, what’s out and where to from here?
The long wait is over with the release of the 2026 National Defence Strategy and supporting Integrated Investment Program, with some winners, some losers and a clearer path...
April 16 2026
Recruitment, retention and resilience in the ADF: 2024–25 figures
Recruitment and retention have long been a challenge facing the Australian Defence Force, with the Defence Annual Report 2024–25 reinforcing this fact.
April 15 2026
Navel-gazing: What can we expect and what should we expect with the next NDS and IIP?
As speculation mounts about the release of the 2026 National Defence Strategy (NDS) and the supporting Integrated Investment Program (IIP), which will come later this week,...
April 14 2026
Cyber war: Pro-Iranian hackers vow to fight on despite a fragile ceasefire with the US
A civilisational apocalypse in Iran may have been averted for now, but despite the ceasefire now in place, hacktivists and state-linked hackers are expected to continue...
April 10 2026
The king is dead, long live the king: Iran ceasefire the nail in the coffin of the ‘rules-based order’
As the world continues to grapple with the fallout from the conflict in the Middle East and prepares for the next round of negotiations between combatants, one thing is...
April 09 2026