The mauling of the mullahs

Forty years of brutal theocracy in Iran appears to be unraveling as the population – led by women – rise up against the ruling clerics.

How technology helps women escape poverty

A formal identity and a mobile phone are two key weapons in the global fight against poverty, boosted by access to other modern technology.

Iranians v theocracy

The ongoing popular protests against Iran’s theocratic rulers are the most serious challenge to the regime since millions took to the streets after the fraudulent 2009 presidential election.

Combating modern slavery

The fight to eradicate modern slavery is not only a moral imperative in its own right but can support Australia’s strategic interests in the Asia–Pacific.

A world hungry for food solutions

Geo-political, environmental and health crises – from Russia’s attack on Ukraine to droughts and floods and the pandemic – have put global supply chains and food security at risk after decades of progress in the fight against famine.

Who is Liz Truss?

One of the Queen’s final acts was to welcome Liz Truss as the new British Prime Minister, in succession to the ebullient Boris Johnson.

A trading world of two halves

The three decade push for trade globalisation after the collapse of Soviet communism has ground to a halt, with the actions of Russia and China threatening to split world trade into two competing blocs again.

Friends of Putin

While Vladimir Putin is ostracized from Europe and the USA, he is far from friendless in the world, as dictators and would-be despots realise that defeat for Putin would undermine their own self-serving ambitions.

How Putin’s winter followed Gorbachev’s spring

Former KGB operative Vladimir Putin wasted no time in reestablishing state control over the political freedoms introduced by Gorbachev as soon as he came to power in 1999.

Eyewitness to an empire’s fall

The late Mikhail Gorbachev tried to revitalise the Soviet Union but presided over its destruction, leaving a legacy which his tyrannical successor is fighting to restore.

Sanctions busting

The West has a long history of imposing economic sanctions on aggressor states, and aggressor states have an equally long history of ignoring them completely.

The democratic partnership for global development

The Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment is a new G7 initiative to counter China’s self-serving Belt and Road Initiative and benefit developing and developed countries alike.