Japan's dramatic election result carries dangers
Japan’s ruling party has secured another overwhelming victory. But beneath the spectacle lies a troubling mix of demographic denial, fiscal illusion and rising geopolitical risk.
Recent articles in World
12 February 2026
If the roles were reversed, how would the west react?
What would western outrage look like if China, rather than the United States, had carried out decades of military interventions and political interference?
11 February 2026
When peaceful protest is allowed to work, democracy works
Melbourne’s mass protest against the visit of Israel President Isaac Herzog showed how large, diverse crowds can assemble peacefully when police exercise restraint and common sense. Sydney’s response points to a deeper failure of judgment about protest, power and democracy.
11 February 2026
Herzog greeted by mass protest despite limits on marching
Denied permission to march, thousands still gathered in central Sydney to protest the visit of Israel’s president. The demonstration revealed both the scale of public anger and the state’s increasingly fraught response to dissent.
11 February 2026
Inviting a foreign president to Bondi’s commemoration divides rather than unites
Inviting a foreign head of state to commemorate an Australian tragedy blurs citizenship, religion and geopolitics – and risks undermining social cohesion at a moment that demands unity.
11 February 2026
Why Australia should consider boycotting the World Cup
International sport is never separate from power. When nations participate in global tournaments, they confer legitimacy on the political and institutional arrangements that make those events possible.
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.
9 February 2026
Why sanctions have entrenched conflict with North Korea, not resolved it
Sanctions on North Korea have neither halted its nuclear program nor produced stability, while imposing heavy costs on civilians and regional security.
6 February 2026
Five years on from the coup, where does Myanmar find its future?
Myanmar’s phased elections have given the junta a thin veneer of legitimacy, but they have done nothing to halt economic decline, armed conflict or the steady erosion of hope. With little external pressure and no genuine reform, fragmentation is likely to deepen.
5 February 2026
Davos and the myth of a global conversation
The World Economic Forum claims to represent global cooperation, but its structure, silences and hierarchies tell a different story about who sets the agenda – and who is expected to listen.
5 February 2026
The pivot to Asia within the transitional rules-based order
As US leadership becomes increasingly erratic, claims grow that the rules-based international order is breaking down. But China and India may yet help guide its transition rather than preside over its collapse.
5 February 2026
New Zealand’s long election year begins
As New Zealand heads toward a November election, early polls suggest a finely balanced contest. Coalition arithmetic, economic anxiety and voter outflow are shaping a year that promises prolonged political uncertainty.
4 February 2026
Australia's middle power diplomacy matters
Middle powers may lack the economic and military weight to coerce others, but they can still shape outcomes through coalition-building, credibility and sustained diplomatic effort.
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