Analysis

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,...
April 24 2026
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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
Australia’s Plan B: Where to in a post-global America world?
The fallout of America’s disastrous campaign against Iran, coupled with the continued fraying of the “rules-based order”, has Australia being urged to seriously...
April 08 2026
Put your money where your mouth is: Australia trying to achieve budget ‘grand strategy’ will leave us exposed in pursuit of Plan B
Yet again Australia’s “efforts” to develop and implement a form of “grand strategy” have been left wanting, as pivotal voices in the debate call for Australia to...
April 07 2026
Stuffed it: Middle East adventures throw economy, allies and stability into disarray
Opinion: By now it is pretty clear that the conflict in the Middle East responsible for constraining at least 20–25 per cent of the world’s oil supply is going from bad...
April 02 2026
Tired of winning: US government shows how to lose an industry and hurt its friends
Opinion: US policy reversals under Trump scrapping EV incentives, imposing broad tariffs and triggering an oil shock have undermined American and allied automakers, while...
April 02 2026
Information sharing of cyber threats vital to national security
Opinion: Modern conflict shows cyber operations and rapid intelligence sharing are essential to national resilience, but Australia must overcome legal, cultural and technical...
April 01 2026
AUKUS submarines: US and UK partners show the realities facing Australia’s small fleet
Opinion: Even in a best-case scenario, Australia’s eight nuclear submarines would likely produce only about two consistently deployable boats due to maintenance, workforce...
March 30 2026
From Pine Gap to HMAS Stirling: Australia must reclaim strategic authorship
Opinion: Australia risks remaining legally sovereign while effectively operating within allied military systems unless it asserts greater control over how its territory is...
March 30 2026
Failed: Strategic policy expert lashes Australia’s policymaking ‘elites’
Yet again the “Lucky Country” is finding that luck is far from a strategy to navigate life, but this didn’t happen overnight, rather it has been years, if not decades,...
March 27 2026
US struggling in Hormuz shows Australia needs to seriously reconsider its maritime capabilities
As the United States Navy continues its efforts to reopen and secure the Strait of Hormuz, Australia must learn some critical lessons about the scale and make-up of its...
March 25 2026