International relations
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Expect epiphanies on Australian defence policy this March
In 2023, announcements from Canberra on foreign affairs, defence, and trade will come thick and fast. They can be expected to be regressive, in contrast to the Albanese government’s positive domestic agenda. Continue reading »
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A difficult relationship is not in the interests of our two countries
The recent bilateral meeting between President Xi and Prime Minister Albanese on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Bali has charted the course for the future development of the China-Australia relationship. Continue reading »
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Bomber’s revolving doorway
There is a never-ending conga line of politicians, intelligence, military and defence officials quick-stepping through revolving doorways onto the boards of lucrative military weapons companies. Continue reading »
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It’s a season to be a warmonger
It’s the season to be jolly and appreciate wrapped presents with surprises that are not true surprises. And the Christmas present most appreciated for a good number of the thinktank military establishment in Canberra will be conflict with Beijing. If not now, then when? Continue reading »
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The War Memorial plays along with Lockheed Martin
Senator David Shoebridge, a new Green from New South Wales, tabled a document in Senate Estimates on 8 November which showed just how keen the Australian War Memorial has been to oblige its corporate donors. Continue reading »
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“Opening the Australian mind”: 50 years of Australia-China relations
I’d like to offer a reflection on where we started out, Australia with China, and what I think we need to do now. Continue reading »
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Nothing agitates the ‘Anglosphere’ more than young women in power
There is nothing which agitates much of the ‘Anglosphere’ media more than a young attractive woman in power. The latest example of the phenomenon is the treatment of 37-year-old Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin. Continue reading »
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Penny Wong’s ‘Whit’-washing of Australia’s history with Timor-Leste is not useful
Penny Wong’s speech at last month’s Whitlam oration demonstrated that while Australia’s relationship with Timor-Leste is swaddled in kind-hearted words, we must not forget that Whitlam gave a nod and a wink to Indonesia’s invasion of 1975. Whitlam’s decision continues to haunt Australia. Continue reading »
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China and Australia once were allies
With QUAD and maybe JAUKUS, Japan is anxious to recruit us and others as spear carriers against China. The anti-China cause is long standing in Japan. Continue reading »
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Enough is enough for Albanese on Assange: our allies may respect us if we say this more
The Prime Minister’s surprise revelation that he has raised the case against Julian Assange with US officials and urged that charges of espionage and conspiracy be dropped opens up many questions. Continue reading »
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Maligned in western media, Donbass forces are defending their future from Ukrainian shelling and fascism
Smeared, stigmatised, and lied about in Western media propaganda, the mostly Russian-speaking people of the Donbass region were being slaughtered by the thousands in a brutal war of “ethnic cleansing” launched against them by the neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv, which the U.S. installed after the CIA overthrew Ukraine’s legally elected president in a 2014 coup. Continue reading »
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Marles pushes ‘China Threat’ in PNG Rugby League talks
Defence Minister Marles and PM Albanese would like to see two Papua New Guinea rugby league teams join the Australian club competition as a way to counter China’s growing influence. Instead of banging on about China, why not start a new regional competition including one or two Pacific Islands teams, New Zealand and Australia? Sport Continue reading »
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China and AUKUS: growing tensions ahead
Given Beijing’s grave concerns and strong actions against AUKUS thus far, one can expect significant tensions between China and the AUKUS countries ahead. Continue reading »
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Australia’s China threat industry led by Sydney Morning Herald takes a hit
Above a picture of a tired looking Xi Jinping – taken at the G20 – the Sydney Morning Herald ran the headline: The Face of Capitulation. It was as banal as it was predictable. It was for a Peter Hartcher story that crowed at having slayed the dragon (sub-text: this was Hartcher’s personal victory). Continue reading »
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Xi and Albanese: Can we again seize the opportunity?
The meeting between President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Albanese could result in an overdue improvement in relations between our two countries. But real improvements will take time and a lot of goodwill. Will Richard Marles be a stumbling block?? Continue reading »
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Xi is no longer Dr Fu Manchu?
After the meeting between Xi and Albanese, we will need patient diplomacy well away from the megaphone and from vested interests in defence industries. China is here to stay and love it or hate it we must learn to live with it. The present government is looking more like it understands this. Continue reading »
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Australia’s path forward: 50 years of relations with China
Cooperate where we can, disagree where we must. It’s time to start the next 50 years of the Australia-China relationship on a more positive footing. Exactly as our predecessors did in December 1972. Continue reading »
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Pivotal Moment: Albanese and Xi in 2022 mirror Whitlam and Zhou in 1971
The meeting between Anthony Albanese and Xi Jinping put me in mind of the public reaction in Australia when Whitlam met Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai in 1971. Continue reading »
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Abuse of Australia’s asylum system grinds on
While we await a government decision on the 31,000 legacy boat arrivals in Australia, asylum applications from people arriving by air continued an inexorable rise to 1,448 in October 2022. Continue reading »
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Ukraine and Russia’s second front is a propaganda war. But who is winning?
Since Russia launched its “special military operation” into neighbouring Ukraine, media, political organisations and researchers in Ukrainian allied countries have accused Moscow of launching a propaganda blitzkrieg meant to justify the invasion. Continue reading »
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China has neither the intent nor the capability to attack us
We are being led in our anti-China hysteria by the United States which is not concerned that China will attack us, or even the United States, but is concerned that its world hegemony is being challenged. Continue reading »
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Labor brings Israel-Palestine policy back to the middle: will it matter?
The announcement of the Albanese Government’s decision to reverse Australia’s recognition of “West” Jerusalem was sloppily handled. That was the only surprise in it. Continue reading »
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US National Defence Strategy reveals Australia’s nuclear deterrence role
The obvious problem with Australia’s defence policy is the confusion between defence of Australia and fighting wars far from Australia. The argument for pursuing the former is incontestable; this is a key obligation government has towards taxpaying citizens. The latter is of questionable justification. Continue reading »
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The PM gushes enthusiasm for closer military ties with Japan. China sees it differently
From the start there was little in PM Albanese’s CV to suggest familiarity with foreign policy, Thanks to a recent interview with him in The Australian we discover he knows even less. Continue reading »
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Marles has a bob each way, backing PNG on Bougainville but not China on Taiwan
The angry reaction to Richard Marles’ comments should be a warning to Canberra about the need to settle past grievances. Continue reading »
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What’s next for Xi’s China?
The Western media have done Xi a great favour: they have bestowed upon him low expectations. Many Western observers, including thoughtful ones, believe that the great China growth story is over, because China is now ruled by an incompetent and isolated leader. Xi will shatter their expectations. Continue reading »
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Familiar and surreptitious ways to war
We have recently learned that Scott Morrison and Peter Dutton secretly installed senior US military officers in Australia’s Defence Department, at taxpayers’ vast expense, and it appears that the present Government is complicit in perpetuating this arrangement. Continue reading »
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Secrecy and empire
Under the guise of protecting the national interest, Australia’s security establishment acts in secret to uphold the global US-led imperial order. Continue reading »
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A promise of violence: The AFP supplies the Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands has become a regular feature in the defence and security news of Australia’s media sphere. Continue reading »
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The costs of cruelty: Egypt profits, Israel colludes, Gazans pay
To enter the large open prison known as the Gaza Strip, hundreds of Palestinians travel daily from Cairo to Rafah on the Egyptian Gaza border. A car journey of 450 kms through the Sinai desert, in summer temperatures hovering around 40C, takes at best seven hours and must negotiate numerous Egyptian military checkpoints. Continue reading »
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