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Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 28 Aug 2020
    • Europe
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • United Nations
    • Iran

    A diplomatic breakdown over “snapback” tests the UN

    Richard Gowan
    Dispute over a US call for pre-2015 Iran sanctions has pushed the Security Council to its limit. It’s been there before.
  • 26 Aug 2020
    • The Americas
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Indonesia
    • South Korea
    • Türkiye

    Where next for MIKTA?

    Jeffrey Robertson
    Tacking the problems created by Covid-19 appear to be beyond this particular example of middle-power activism.
  • 21 Aug 2020
    • Middle East
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • China
    • Iran
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Israel

    Hidden seams in the UAE-Israel deal

    Ben Scott
    It’s all about Iran, right? Actually, the agreement has more to do with managing the US and China.
  • 20 Aug 2020
    • Defence & Security
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Sri Lanka

    Australia and Sri Lanka: Air connectivity in the Indian Ocean region

    George I. H. Cooke
    The success of the two countries’ naval cooperation shows the potential for expanded partnership.
  • 18 Aug 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Coronavirus

    Diplomacy and global governance after Covid‑19: Prepare for change

    Jeffrey Robertson
    Centralised decision-making and tighter budgets are here to stay, with pointless political talkfest out of the way.
  • 5 Aug 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Nuclear Non-Proliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament

    Remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki

    Gareth Evans , Chung-in Moon
    Existing nuclear arms control deals are dead or dying, but that should not be an excuse to give up disarmament hopes.
  • 27 Jul 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • Australia
    • New Zealand
    • United Kingdom
    • Canada

    Five Eyes: Blurring the lines between intelligence and policy

    Ben Scott
    Intelligence sharing is one thing. Aligning policy with the same brand risks making too exclusive a grouping.
  • 27 Jul 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Middle East
    • European Union
    • Türkiye
    • United States

    Turkey: Not a team player

    Rodger Shanahan
    A nationalist bent at home and provocations abroad have frayed ties with Europe, and maybe soon the US, too.
  • 17 Jul 2020
    • Australia in the World
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • China
    • Coronavirus

    COVIDcast: Malcolm Turnbull on geopolitics and the pandemic

    Malcolm Turnbull , Hervé Lemahieu
    The latest episode in a podcast to discuss the implications of coronavirus for Australia, the region and the world.
  • 14 Jul 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • Australia

    Putting study abroad on ice carries a diplomatic cost

    Iona Main
    The benefits of international education come from cultural capital and influence – Covid-19 is putting these at risk.
  • 13 Jul 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    A diplomatic step-up to match our military step-up

    Dave Sharma
    We need to strengthen the arm of Australian diplomacy just as much as we need to strengthen the military.
  • 12 Jun 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • India
    • Coronavirus

    Seizing the chance to chart “The India Way”

    Shruti Pandalai
    Covid-19 has allowed New Delhi to show a collaborative and constructive brand of diplomacy, instead of zero-sum rivalry.
  • 31 May 2020
    • Australia
    • Diplomacy
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • United States

    A G7+?

    Daniel Flitton
    Donald Trump’s offer to bring Australia into the G7 isn’t nearly so simple as pulling up a chair to the top table.
  • 21 May 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • South Korea

    South Korea’s foreign ministry: Just a few bad eggs?

    Jeffrey Robertson
    Recent scandals have raised questions about the culture within the country’s diplomatic corps. There are ways to fix it.
  • 13 May 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Coronavirus

    Covid-19 and foreign policy: What’s changed, what hasn’t

    Dick Grant
    Health, climate, migration and foreign investment ­must each contend with the virus. But it’s not all doom and gloom.
  • 30 Apr 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • China
    • Coronavirus

    Foresight and pragmatism missing in Australia’s relations with China

    Alistair Nicholas
    Beijing’s man in Canberra misjudged our tolerance for a bully. But why is Australia alone pushing for a Covid inquiry?
  • 17 Apr 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Coronavirus

    International Covid cooperation: Lessons from HIV/AIDS

    Annmaree O’Keeffe
    Australia’s responded to the viral killer in the 1980s not only with health measures but a crucial diplomatic campaign.
  • 2 Mar 2020
    • Australia in the World
    • Diplomacy

    Youth-led diplomacy: Big opportunity for big impact

    Elise Stephenson
    Tapping into the energy and insights of young people can help ensure the future success of Australia’s foreign policy.
  • 3 Feb 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Russia

    Competitive coexistence: A new blueprint for Russia-West relations

    Elizabeth Buchanan
    Building a better strategy means, above all, getting rid of theoretical constructs that no longer apply.
  • 31 Jan 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • Australia
    • The Trump Presidency

    A new ambassador in Washington

    Alan C. Tidwell
    A diplomatic changing of the guard means Australia has a chance to have a different conversation.
  • 30 Jan 2020
    • Asia
    • Global Economy
    • Diplomacy

    Economic diplomacy: APEC’s future, digital trade deals, and green debt

    Greg Earl
    Malaysian PM Mahathir controls the credibility of APEC, and China controls how emerging economies cut carbon emissions.
  • 28 Jan 2020
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Iran

    Q&A: Jason Rezaian on Kylie Moore-Gilbert’s nightmare in Iran

    Daniel Flitton
    The American journalist – also once a prisoner in Tehran – wants Australia to push to end Iran’s state hostage-taking.
  • 31 Dec 2019
    • Global Issues
    • Diplomacy

    Best of The Interpreter 2019: The world of sports

    The Interpreter
    You win some, you lose some – in politics as in sport.
  • 18 Dec 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • Review

    Favourites of 2019: Richard Holbrooke, “almost great”

    Michael Fullilove
    He was the diplomat who in many ways embodied the US with his idealism and his egocentrism.
  • 28 Nov 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Chart of the week

    Chart of the week: Where countries lie abroad

    Bonnie Bley
    Changes in the number of diplomatic posts tell a story about priorities and challenges for a country’s foreign policy.
  • 27 Nov 2019
    • Diplomacy

    World diplomacy stocktake: A shifting of the ranks

    Bonnie Bley
    China has overtaken the US with the largest diplomatic network in the 2019 Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index.
  • 16 Oct 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Japan

    Dispatches from the front (row)

    Rodger Shanahan
    Japan – through its team and wonderful crowds – put on a rugby festival worthy of the name.
  • 15 Oct 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • United Kingdom

    Diplomatic immunity: Time to change the rules

    Alison Pert
    A fatal road accident in the UK has again put a spotlight on potential abuse of a system intended to protect envoys.
  • 8 Oct 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Qatar

    Is the Qatar blockade ruining the country’s sporting goals?

    André Leslie
    <p>The tiny Gulf nation wants to be a world stage for sport, but a regional boycott isn’t helping.</p>
  • 1 Oct 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • United Nations
    • Review

    An educated idealist is still a believer

    Erin Hurley
    Samantha Power’s memoir is no reflection in despair but instead a continuing call to action in support of rights.
  • 18 Sep 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Japan
    • South Korea

    Korea-Japan tensions, as seen in the suburbs of Brisbane 

    Melissa Conley Tyler , Mitchell Vandewerdt-Holman
    When Toowong briefly hit the headlines in South Korea, it signalled another test for Australia’s regional engagement.
  • 5 Sep 2019
    • Diplomacy

    Leaders’ communiqués: Do we need them anymore?

    Joanna Hewitt
    Even without a statement to share the results of summit deliberations, global leaders’ meetings still get things done.
  • 3 Sep 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • United Nations
    • Iran

    How the US keeps priority boarding ahead of Iran at the United Nations

    Carlisle Richardson
    If Iran’s Foreign Minister wants to speak at UN headquarters in New York, is the US obliged to issue him a visa?
  • 28 Aug 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United Nations

    Who wants to be a peacemaker?

    Rita Parker
    Next year’s contenders for non-permanent seats on the UN Security Council have much to offer, and perhaps much to gain.
  • 27 Aug 2019
    • Europe
    • Diplomacy
    • United States

    Macron tries to put the spark back into the G7

    Hervé Lemahieu
    By keeping Trump from derailing the proceedings, the self-anointed saviour of the West scored a tactical win.
  • 23 Aug 2019
    • Asia
    • Diplomacy

    A middle-power moment

    Bonnie Bley
    Countries banding together in a multilateral response to great-power competition seems to be on the way up.
  • 15 Aug 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    Sheer stupidity and diplomatic damage from ugly Aussies abroad

    Alex Oliver
    Pack your manners with your passport, people!
  • 31 Jul 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • China

    A podium protest aimed at swimming’s administrators, not China

    André Leslie
    Those trying to turn Mack Horton’s spat with Sun Yang into an attack on China have plunged down the wrong lane.
  • 12 Jul 2019
    • Diplomacy

    The embattled envoy and the need for frank assessment

    Daniel Flitton
    Britain’s Kim Darroch was caught in a whirlwind because he did his job.
  • 10 Jul 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    Progress of women in diplomacy a point of pride for DFAT

    Frances Adamson
    More women than ever are in key diplomatic positions for Australia.
  • 9 Jul 2019
    • Defence & Security
    • Diplomacy

    Women yet to smash glass ceiling in Australian diplomacy and security

    Alex Oliver , Danielle Cave
    A new Lowy Institute study reveals a few trailblazers doesn’t necessarily reflect progress in fixing a gender imbalance.
  • 6 Jun 2019
    • Defence & Security
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    A sea ride with Australia’s Indo-Pacific Endeavour

    Bec Strating
    <p>Floating a different brand of diplomacy has plenty of attraction but still finds some choppy regional waters.</p>
  • 7 May 2019
    • Public Opinion
    • Diplomacy
    • China-Australia Relations
    • Australia’s election 2019

    After the Australian election: the China test

    Natasha Kassam
    New Lowy poll figures suggest voters prefer Labor over the Coalition for managing relations with Beijing – just.
  • 20 Mar 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • China

    Why reciprocity matters: the US Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act

    Natasha Kassam
    China’s days of treating the US as a peer and expecting special treatment at the same time appear to be running out.
  • 6 Mar 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • North Korea

    Political leadership versus diplomacy

    Jeffrey Robertson
    Political leadership and diplomacy evolved over thousands of years into distinct fields - for good reasons.
  • 4 Mar 2019
    • Australia in the World
    • Diplomacy

    Australia, it’s time to put our political diplomats to the test

    Daniel Flitton
    There’s a better way to deal with politicians-turned-ambassadors and it comes from (whisper it) the United States.
  • 14 Feb 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia

    The barely-noticed momentous change to Australian foreign policy

    Donald R Rothwell
    A seemingly minor move on Venezuela has potential ramifications for every country Australia has diplomatic ties with.
  • 6 Feb 2019
    • Diplomacy
    • Technology

    Facebook’s first 15 years and lessons for diplomacy

    Damien Spry
    <p>Diplomacy has not found facebook to be an easy or effective way to improve engagement across borders.</p>
  • 4 Feb 2019
    • Australia in the World
    • Diplomacy

    Giving Australia a sporting chance

    Jonathan Prosser
    Diplomacy in the Pacific should exploit one of Australia’s special attributes – the love of competition.
  • 17 Dec 2018
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Israel

    Responses to Australia’s Israel capital decision

    Daniel Flitton
    <p>How the world reacted to Scott Morrison’s decision to formally recognise West Jerusalem Israel’s capital.</p>
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