Off to war in West Asia we go (again)
Deploying an RAAF Wedgetail to West Asia risks making Australia a co-belligerent in the US-Israel war against Iran while exposing the country to serious strategic and economic consequences.
Recent articles in Defence
12 March 2026
How US bases make Australia part of the Iran war
Australia’s role in supporting the US-Israel war against Iran with the hosting of a string of US military bases across the country is a critical contribution to the US war machine.
10 March 2026
A vessel of lies: Australian sailors implicated in the Iran War
Australian personnel aboard a US nuclear submarine during an attack on an Iranian vessel highlight the deeper implications of AUKUS – and the risk of Australia being drawn into American wars.
6 March 2026
Australia needs to read its own geography
As Australia deepens its alignment with Washington through AUKUS and expanded military integration, it risks compromising the regional trust and autonomy that underpin its long-term prosperity and security.
26 February 2026
How consultocracy became a national security blind spot
Espionage today is less about weapons than insider access to economic policy. Australia’s muted response to the PwC scandal reveals a serious failure to treat economic intelligence as a core national security asset.
19 February 2026
How the United States built the world’s biggest military machine
Since 1945, one country has carried out a conventional military buildup unmatched in scale, cost and global reach. Claims about recent rivals distract from the historical record of how modern military dominance was built.
19 February 2026
The world is drifting back towards unconstrained nuclear danger
With the expiration of the New START treaty and the erosion of arms control agreements, the safeguards that once limited nuclear danger are rapidly disappearing – despite decades of evidence that restraint reduces catastrophic risk.
18 February 2026
Will Japan’s remilitarisation drag us into a war?
Japan’s rapid rearmament marks a decisive break with its post-war pacifist stance. As regional tensions sharpen, Australia and New Zealand must decide whether alignment offers security or invites new risks.
16 February 2026
Handshake diplomacy with Prabowo won’t secure shared values
Australia’s new security treaty with Indonesia is heavy on symbolism but light on substance. As President Prabowo Subianto tightens his grip on power, warm rhetoric from Canberra risks obscuring growing democratic regression and human rights abuses.
10 February 2026
India’s submarine deal shows what due diligence looks like
India’s decision to buy conventionally powered submarines from Germany highlights a sharp contrast with Australia’s AUKUS pathway on cost, capability and planning.
7 February 2026
Australia unlikely to follow US downgrade on China threat
The US National Defense Strategy signals a softer, more pragmatic approach to China. Australia’s silence on the shift exposes how detached its defence posture has become from both reality and its own national interests.
4 February 2026
AUKUS from where we are – and why that’s the problem
Australia’s AUKUS submarine program is tied to struggling US and UK shipbuilding systems, escalating costs and political whim, raising questions about whether the right defence choices were ever properly debated.
3 February 2026
Plan B: towards an Australian model of military self-reliance
Australia’s defence posture remains shaped by expeditionary assumptions at a time when alliance guarantees are less certain. Building a credible Plan B requires a renewed focus on territorial defence, resilience and self-reliance.
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