Analysis

Q&A: The Iran war, cyber warfare, and the role of hacktivism outside of the front lines
Dr Avi Davidi, Iran expert at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, speaks to Defence Connect on the role of cyber operations in the...
March 19 2026
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Security, sovereignty and the Indo-Pacific: Morrison’s strategic ‘reset’ warning
Opinion: Former prime minister Scott Morrison argues that today’s global turmoil is a strategic reset, one that demands democracies, rebuilds strength and resilience...
March 18 2026
Trump the unilateralist becomes Trump the multilateralist – for now
Opinion: Donald Trump’s administration is now urging other countries to secure the Strait of Hormuz, exposing both American strategic misjudgement and Australia’s...
March 17 2026
Pentagon pushes to accelerate weapons procurement as strategic competition intensifies
Opinion: The United States is overhauling defence procurement to deliver military technology faster, expand industry competition and harness commercial innovation, explains...
March 16 2026
Ignorance is bliss: Technological self-denial is death on the modern battlefield
On the modern battlefield, technology developed by Iran, Russia and China has often been characterised as being copied or adapted from Western designs.
March 13 2026
Japan turns to dual-use technology to power a new defence industrial strategy
Opinion: Japan is rapidly integrating dual-use technologies and civilian innovation into its defence strategy to strengthen supply chains, expand defence exports and deepen...
March 11 2026
Lessons from the mother country: Lacklustre Royal Navy has some hard truths for RAN
Despite the recent success of Operation Highmast in 2025, all is not well with the Royal Navy, as events in the Middle East reveal that the once indefatigable Royal Navy is...
March 10 2026
A less needy, more capable Australia – recognising the new American reality for allies
Opinion: Australia’s defence strategy must urgently reduce reliance on the United States and prioritise sovereign defence industry, as America is now politically...
March 09 2026
Iran v the world: The age of cyber kinetic warfare is well and truly here
As the missiles fly in both directions in the Middle East, it’s important not to overlook the cyber battlefield.
March 06 2026
Energy-minerals-defence: Australia’s sovereign trinity
Opinion: Australia must shift its sovereignty focus from labelling industries to strengthening interconnected systems like energy security, critical minerals access, and...
March 05 2026
Beware the ides of April? Distracted US opens door to potential Taiwan move by Beijing
With the United States once again distracted in the Middle East and chewing through critical munitions at a rate of knots, it may have unwittingly emboldened Beijing to take...
March 03 2026
Washington’s Iran gamble and Australia’s strategic stakes
Opinion: A strike on the United States Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain underscores the escalating conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, with the outcome likely to...
March 03 2026
Really? We’re still afraid to have ‘hard conversations’ about our woeful defence capabilities?
The weekend’s renewed fighting in the Middle East reinforces the same lesson as the Russian invasion of Ukraine: the emerging multipolar world will be competitive,...
March 02 2026
Competitive coexistence, the ‘Fight Tonight’ force and Australia’s growing multipolar predicament
Just as the Cold War was characterised by a period of “Competitive Coexistence” between the United States and the Soviet Union, our new multipolar world embodies...
February 27 2026
Intergenerational warfare: The social cohesion issue no one wants to broach
With much of Australia’s political and policy discourse since 14 December focused on social cohesion and the intersection with national security, why have we failed to...
February 25 2026
Carving the turkey: Trump’s strategy for isolating Axis allies becomes clearer, but questions remain for US partners
Like a skilled chef carving up a Christmas or Thanksgiving turkey, President Donald Trump is slowly and methodically paring Beijing and Moscow’s allies away from their...
February 24 2026
Banana republic 2.0: Renewed concerns about Australia’s economy raises more questions
With concerns about the health and vitality of the national economy, experts are once again dusting off the “banana republic” moniker, raising major questions about the...
February 23 2026
Surveillance technology: Is it really that bad?
Drones, invasive software, data mining tools and other forms of digital surveillance are increasingly critical features of modern warfare.
February 19 2026
Turkey’s Pacific play: Systemic entrenchment inside Australia’s threshold
Opinion: Turkey has quietly built long-term diplomatic, institutional and political influence across the Pacific – leveraging development aid, elite engagement and...
February 19 2026
Return of the rising sun: Japan’s new PM signals rapid rearmament and ‘normalisation’ to counter rise of China
Eighty-one years following the end of the Second World War, Japan is seeking to cast off the shackles imposed upon it by the United States, as the new prime minister, Sanae...
February 18 2026