Flying high

Australia needs more fighter jets to secure its airspace against incursion from hostile foreign powers, and these can be secured much more quickly than new naval ships.

Intelligence on the agenda

The unclassified version of the 2024 Independent Intelligence Review is a welcome and worthy sequel to its 2017 predecessor, with an ambitious set of recommendations to improve Australia’s national intelligence capacity.

A united front

Australian politicians should establish clearer political boundaries around national security to avoid politicising ongoing security issues and to better manage secondary effects.

Worst case scenario

China’s imperialist designs on the region demand immediate strengthening of the nation’s defences, particularly as the United States withdraws from the alliances which have kept the peace for 70 years.

Gun boat diplomacy

China has the largest navy in the world and has its addiction to gun-boat diplomacy from the South China Sea to the Tasman should provoke a debate about defence in the forthcoming election.

Sea change

Australia has been given a wake-up call with the arrival of a Chinese naval battlegroup off the Australian coast underlining the power imbalance between the two navies.

Nothin’ but trouble

The head of ASIO has painted a gloomy picture of national prospects and international affairs as social strife and authoritarian aggression loom large on the agenda.

On military service

Military service has developed a checkered reputation in modern society, but it can still develop the values of humanity, empathy and compassion rather than degrading them.

Silence isn’t golden

The Federal Government’s habit of evading, ignoring or downplaying security threats undermines public trust, encourages conspiracy theories and emboldens our enemies.

Naming names

The government has released its first report on foreign interference in Australian affairs but remains curiously reluctant to name the countries involved.

Safeguarding Australia

The government’s failure to address critical vulnerabilities in defence, energy security, and economic resilience exposes the nation to unprecedented risks.

Bambi meets Godzilla

China’s unveiling of radical prototype aircraft has sent shockwaves through the West’s defence establishment, as China now threatens to out-innovate as well as out-produced its democratic counterparts in terms of military might.