27 Aug 2021
Australia and LGBTQI rights
Canberra needs a loud and proud foreign policy on the human rights of gender and sexual minorities.
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26 Aug 2021
What’s in a name? The Taliban and recognition under international law
Formal recognition as a legitimate government may be a bargaining chip to press the Taliban to respect human rights. -
11 Aug 2021
Pandemic plight of international students will leave Australia poorer
Lonely days during an education abroad will deplete Australia’s soft power reserves. -
6 Aug 2021
Refreshing American soft power in the Pacific Islands
Tales of past wars no longer resonate. The US has better stories to tell, not least of its own stumbles with democracy. -
29 Jul 2021
Economic diplomacy: Going for gold in 20 years and counting
Brisbane will host the Olympics in 2032 but the starter’s gun has already sounded in the cost versus benefits contest. -
28 Jul 2021
Far more world leaders visit China than America
If leadership diplomacy was an Olympic sport, Beijing beats Washington to the gold medal. -
9 Jul 2021
The changing face of Australia’s diplomatic network
A stocktake shows rising political appointments but Australia’s heads of mission now far better reflect the population. -
7 Jul 2021
Personality in foreign policy
How leaders interact and are judged can shape a country’s approach to the world as much as economics or military might. -
2 Jul 2021
Forgiveness not permission: A feminist foreign policy
If Australia wants to adopt a values-based approach to the world, the next step is obvious. -
15 Jun 2021
Australia’s China politics heats up
The “bad strategy” towards Beijing is exposed as the gloves come off in Australia’s domestic foreign policy debates. -
9 Jun 2021
China overtakes America in presidential diplomacy
Memo for the White House: You should get out more. -
25 May 2021
PNG can’t turn a blind eye to the conflict next door
As popular support for West Papua grows more vocal, PNG officials walk a diplomatic tightrope. -
24 May 2021
ASEAN’s huge gamble on Myanmar
If it doesn’t move quickly on its hard-won consensus, the organisation risks letting the junta call the shots. -
18 May 2021
A rare test of China diplomacy
Australia and New Zealand provide a case for whether it pays to be nice – or if it’s simply not worth bothering. -
6 May 2021
Economic diplomacy: Patent politics and trade deal twists
President Biden moves to suspend vaccine patents, RCEP ramps up, IA-CEPA gets a lesson and US dollar reserves tank. -
30 Apr 2021
China’s climate pivot could reshape the economic future
Many of the same arguments persist as international climate negotiations enter a fourth decade. But actions matter. -
26 Apr 2021
Indonesia raises ASEAN’s bar on Myanmar
President Joko Widodo had nothing to gain domestically in calling a special summit. But in not failing, he succeeded. -
21 Apr 2021
China’s Twitter trolls make bid for vacant Trump property
“Own the libs” obnoxiousness failed, but China’s social media diplomats haven’t all got the memo. -
20 Apr 2021
“America’s back” in the Paris Agreement. For how long?
Climate politics is enjoying an optimistic moment, but a Trumpist rerun would be ruinous for environmental diplomacy. -
14 Apr 2021
With Olympic snub, North Korea returns to isolation
Pyongyang’s decision to skip the Tokyo games is part of a broader retreat back to the international wilderness. -
1 Apr 2021
Why not try? What a Papua New Guinean team could bring to the NRL
Covid-19 has sapped PNG of excitement. But in the years to come, people’s love of footy offers a common rally point. -
30 Mar 2021
Australia must walk the talk on women’s rights – globally and at home
It’s not just local politics. Australia’s credibility with a feminist foreign policy, in name or not, is on the line. -
23 Mar 2021
When a middle power is not caught in the middle
Different understandings of the world where a middle power sits has led South Korea down a different path to Australia. -
22 Mar 2021
North Korea and Malaysia’s predictable diplomatic divorce
Pyongyang is sending a message in typically overbearing style. But the target is as much the US as it is Malaysia. -
15 Mar 2021
A new “concert” to govern the Indo-Pacific
For Quad leaders emphasising an “inclusive” region, there may be a ready-made example for involving China. -
12 Mar 2021
Iran: Could Australia’s hostage diplomacy have been better?
A public campaign by Australia’s government to try to shame Iran into freeing Kylie Moore-Gilbert would not have worked. -
5 Mar 2021
Her brilliant career
An entertaining and informative memoir about a woman’s career through a deeply patriarchal profession in diplomacy. -
23 Feb 2021
Terrorism and New Zealand’s dual citizenship conundrum
This is an age in which dual nationality is widespread, and problems related to alleged ISIS members were foreseeable. -
19 Feb 2021
What happened to Australia’s “soft power”?
A review of soft power was trumpeted as a chance to increase Australia’s persuasive force. So why was it abandoned? -
16 Feb 2021
India, Canada and the new vaccine politics
As a pharmaceutical powerhouse, India finds it now holds the cards over Canada and what it sees as its irksome PM. -
12 Feb 2021
Foreign policy’s “Indigenous moment” is here
Australia needs to step up to the challenge. -
22 Jan 2021
Beijing’s “Wolf Warriors” score own goals
A confounding kimchi kerfuffle shows the CCP has made people at home hungry for news of China’s dominance. -
20 Jan 2021
The Irrepressibles tame the Invincibles in their impregnable fortress
A transformative cricket series will do more to strengthen Australia–India bonds than any amount of public diplomacy. -
14 Dec 2020
Australia-Indonesia relations need to talk the talk
Indonesian language programs in Australian universities – a gateway to cultural connection – are disappearing. -
9 Dec 2020
Do politicians really make “excellent envoys”?
A politician turned plenipotentiary can make a powerful statement. Yet it can also undermine public service neutrality. -
7 Dec 2020
Solve generational problems by listening to the youth who’ll live them
Developing the Youth, Peace and Security agenda in the Asia-Pacific is a chance to ensure lasting change. -
3 Dec 2020
More pollies in more posts
Are changing contours of global power or suspicions of the “swamp” driving more politicians to fill key diplomatic jobs? -
1 Dec 2020
We’ve been trolled – expect more of it, because it worked
Here’s how Scott Morrison might have responded to China’s online provocation. -
27 Nov 2020
Port Adelaide to Shanghai: Sports diplomacy and the long road ahead
When a sports club thinks strategically, governments can benefit too. -
25 Nov 2020
In search of a middle-power rethink on North Korea policy
An international commission could potentially transform an outdated and failed approach to the Korean peninsula. -
25 Nov 2020
A Biden presidency and US-Russia relations
The new US administration will certainly push back harder on the Kremlin, but there may also be chances for engagement. -
19 Nov 2020
Beijing’s bad books: Australia can learn from Norway and South Korea
China’s coercive diplomacy is not new. Other countries have managed to repair ties after a perceived slight. -
12 Nov 2020
Japan-Australia: The chance to sweeten the deal
Scott Morrison’s trip to Tokyo should move beyond a narrow focus on defence to secure the living environment. -
5 Nov 2020
A backlash against the Women, Peace and Security agenda?
Power politics overshadow progress at the UN Security Council as Resolution 1325 celebrates its 20th anniversary. -
2 Nov 2020
But what does “rules-based order” mean?
For Australia to shape the future order, it will have to get more specific about what it wants. -
28 Oct 2020
Shocking abuse of female passengers in Doha demands resolute response
Australia’s options to put Qatar on notice start with recalling its ambassador. The next step could go further. -
21 Oct 2020
Diplomacy after Covid: No looking back
This will not be the last year the world gathers in a virtual meeting – just think beyond Zoom as the platform. -
5 Oct 2020
A dose of climate realism about China’s carbon pledge
Beijing’s target falls well short of the dramatic and globally organised action needed to stop dangerous climate change. -
3 Sep 2020
The shrinking of the Australian mind
Australian strategic decision-makers need lessons in our once-grand ambitions – and accomplishments – in world affairs. -
31 Aug 2020
The limits of Zoom diplomacy in Asia
A whirlwind of online diplomatic speed-dating doesn’t allow the impromptu conversations where real business is done.