World Affairs
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ELAINE PEARSON. Australia’s lame response to Anwar Ibrahim’s detention was a mistake
The region looks to Australia as a functioning democracy. We shouldn’t sideline human rights issues for trade and security ties. Continue reading »
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TSEEN KHOO. What Anzac Day meant for Asian Australians.
This year, just before ANZAC Day, I read a poignant, insightful piece by Nadine Chemali about what new migrants to Australia really thought about Anzac Day. Continue reading »
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MICHAEL O’KEEFE. Why China’s ‘debt-book diplomacy’ in the Pacific shouldn’t ring alarm bells just yet
Talk of Chinese “debt trap” diplomacy is nothing new, but a recent report by Harvard University researchers has resurrected long-held fears that China’s debt diplomacy poses a threat to Australian interests in the Pacific. Continue reading »
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JOSE BELO and MICHAEL SAINSBURY. Timor-Leste’s new leaders warn president
Former presidents Xanana Gusmao and Tuar Matan Ruak scotch unity government talk Overwhelmingly Catholic Timor-Leste could be heading for more political strife despite a coalition headed by independence hero Xanana Gusmao having a clear win in May 12 elections. Continue reading »
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MICHAEL McKINLEY. Australia, China and three fragments of militarisation in context.
The term ‘militarisation’ is the new portmanteau expression for describing China’s initiatives in the South China Sea; it is at once accusatory and exculpatory: China is the instigator, the Western powers and those Western-aligned (defensively-minded, and innocent) are exonerated from any guilt their reactions might attract. The term, however, is misused in the current context, Continue reading »
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RICHARD TANTER. Tightly Bound: Australia’s Alliance-Dependent Militarisation.
Australia’s unique military and intelligence relationship with the United States, combined with the country being geographically a part of Asia but historically, culturally and intellectually identified with the Anglo-Saxon world, have significant implications for Canberra’s current military modernisation. Richard Tanter examines how the country’s dependence on its alliance relationships helps determine the direction of that Continue reading »
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DUNCAN GRAHAM. Praying is fine – Action is better.
Five guards and an inmate died in a Jakarta prison riot last week, allegedly launched by Islamic State. More than 150 terrorists are held at the overcrowded jail where turmoil erupted six months ago. Then early on Sunday church bombings in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second largest city, killed nine at the start of the Muslim fasting Continue reading »
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DAVID COWARD. The man who did for Mao – a review of a biography of Simon Leys by Philippe Paquet
In 1932, Malcolm Muggeridge, then based in Moscow for the Manchester Guardian, filed reports of what he had found out about Soviet Russia, from the food shortages and forced labour to the deaths of 3 million people following the collectivization of agriculture in the Ukraine. His copy was censored and he was ridiculed by the Continue reading »
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TIM COSTELLO. The Budget and aid.
The Coalition Government’s fifth budget last week was carefully calibrated to offer just enough to a discontented electorate to restart the political contest ahead of the poll expected early next year. Yet again Australia’s battered aid program took a hit, this time in the form of a multi-year cut, combined with an extended freeze on Continue reading »
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JOCELYN CHEY. Caught in the middle: Chinese Australians feel unwanted
International disputes between contending powers frequently result in persecution of local ethnic minorities. Look at how local German and Japanese communities were treated during the two World Wars, for instance, or how people of Middle Eastern background have been profiled since the rise of Al Qaeda and ISIS. As suspicions of China predominate in Canberra, Continue reading »
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GEOFF RABY. China relations can only be unfrozen with Julie Bishop’s sacking
Once again Australian foreign policy seems to be missing in action. As events unfold at remarkable speed in our area of most strategic interest – north-east Asia – Australia finds itself unable to engage with the key participant at the centre of those events: namely China. Continue reading »
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CAVAN HOGUE. Malaysia’s first new government in six decades revels in a shocking victor.
The surprising Malaysian election results show yet again that we shouldn’t put faith in polls and pundits. Despite serious gerrymandering and other bits of nastiness the Barisan Nasional lost the election. The return of Dr Mahathir raises questions about the future. He has promised to hand over to Anwar Ibrahim but hasn’t said when. Najib looks Continue reading »
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RICHARD BUTLER. US and the Iran Agreement: True Lies and Chaos.
In explaining his decision on the US leaving the Iran nuclear agreement (JCPOA), President Trump told a number of true lies. His National Security Advisor, John Bolton, then told the truth: it was to conform with Israel’s wishes. Israel and Iran commenced hostilities in Syria, immediately. Continue reading »
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CAMERON HILL. China’s policing assistance in the Pacific: a new era?
While there has been renewed discussion and debate surrounding China’s infrastructure assistance to Pacific nations over the last several months, less attention has been paid to China’s growing policing and law enforcement presence in the region. While still in its early stages, this presence spans several of the Pacific Island countries which recognise the People’s Continue reading »
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RICHARD ACKLAND. Peter Dutton’s power grabs may yet be his undoing
The fate of Amber Rudd offers some hope to Australians who disapprove of Dutton and his methods. Continue reading »
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RAMESH THAKUR. Spring blossoms on the Korean Peninsula.
The leaders of North and South Korea have met, shaken hands, taken symbolic yet hugely consequential steps across into each other’s territory, talked about possible pathways to peace on the peninsula, issued a joint communique, and returned home well satisfied with the breakneck speed of progress thus far. Who deserves the most credit for this Continue reading »
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RAMESH THAKUR. VIP culture is a blight on India’s democracy – a culture of impunity lies behind India’s rape epidemic
Solving India’s sexual violence crisis means holding the perpetrators of wrongdoing accountable – no matter their power in society. For Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this means ending the VIP culture within his own party. Continue reading »
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ANDREW FARRAN. Brexit: Crashing out a real possibility
The Brexiters deeply distrust the motives of the Remainers who are seeking ways and means of frustrating the process of withdrawal as exampled by the House of Lords’ actions recently requiring that the final draft agreement be submitted to Parliament for its approval and if not approved, that the government be directed to reopen negotiations. Continue reading »
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MARTIN WOLF. How the Beijing elite sees the world
How does the Chinese ruling elite view the world? Over the weekend, I participated in a dialogue between a handful of foreign scholars and journalists and top Chinese officials, academics and business people, organised by the Tsinghua University Academic Centre for Chinese Economic Practice and Thinking. The discussion was franker than any I have participated Continue reading »
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TOM ENGELHARDT. The Caliphate of Trump, and a Planet in Ruins
Here is my six-category rundown of what I would call American extremity on a global scale: There is US violence at home and abroad. Continue reading »
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CHAS FREEMAN. On the Souring of Sino-American Relations
(Remarks to the Committee of 100) I am honored to stand before you this morning to discuss US-China relations. It’s a challenge to speak on a subject so many here know so much about, and to do so at a moment of such radical inflection in the relationship. But Sino-American relations are a matter of Continue reading »
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JOSEPH A. CAMILLERI: Australia’s China policy mired in phobia and confusion.
Australia’s handling of its relations with China is rapidly descending into farce. Geoff Raby’s excellent piece (30 April) makes abundantly clear the principal factor at work, namely a nostalgic attachment to the US-led regional and global order of earlier years. Continue reading »
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TIM LINDSEY. Post-Reformasi Indonesia: The Age of Uncertainty.
Twenty years ago, the Soeharto era ended with reformation. Today’s post-Reformasi Indonesia is full of uncertainty, with profound implications for its foreign relations. Continue reading »
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The Afghan War Isn’t Being Won, Says New Pentagon Audit
A new summary of the country’s troubles by a special inspector general doesn’t paint an optimistic picture. Continue reading »
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RAMESH THAKUR. Trump is Master of the Art of Making America Grate.
Trump’s decision yesterday to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal is a global tragedy likely to unsettle an already volatile Middle East and a world in some disarray. Trump has pulled out of the deal not because it was flawed, but because it was working as intended and this posed an insurmountable obstacle to potential military Continue reading »
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MICHAEL KEATING AND JON STANFORD. Australia’s strategic risks and future defence policy; Part 2: Future defence strategy, capability and submarines
In this second article we discuss the need to develop a defence strategy that involves shifting from a force structure designed for coalition warfare to one optimised for the independent defence of Australia. We focus on the requirement for new submarines, given that these are the assets best suited for the prosecution of asymmetric warfare Continue reading »
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Turnbull Government may be toning down anti-China stance
Canberra is giving indications it believes an 18-month tilt to a marked anti-China stance might now be corrected. There are hints the Turnbull Government recognises that being the most rhetorically hostile to China of all US allies does not serve our national interest. Continue reading »
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Iran’s nukes redux
It takes chutzpah for a country that has an unacknowledged nuclear arsenal to point the finger at another country for clandestine nuclear activities and to demand military action to halt them. Continue reading »
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MARIAM MOKHTAR. Mahathir’s Last Hurrah.
Critics of Malaysia’s longest-serving prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, used to joke that he would like to be prime minister for life. Today, that prediction may have a ring of truth, although others believe the incumbent PM, Najib Abdul Razak, would like to stake the same claim. Continue reading »
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GEORGE EATON. The local elections in the UK were not a “bad night” for Labour – but Jeremy Corbyn needs another great leap forward
Britain has entered a new era of ultra-hung politics. Were last night’s local election results replicated on a national level, Labour would win 283 seats (up 21), the Conservatives 280 (down 38) and the resurgent Liberal Democrats 22 (up 10). Continue reading »