New Syria opposition credible but shaky
Yesterday's announcement from Qatar that the disparate Syrian opposition has united to a degree previously unseen is replete with possibilities.East Timor: Don't let success blind you to the gaps
These views are the author's own and do not reflect those of the Department of Defence or the Australian Government.What do the French make of Petraeus?
The CIA Director's decision to resign over revelations of an affair had me scratching my head yesterday.China Party Congress linkage
Edward Kus helped to put this post together.Reader riposte: Bond villains and their plots
Mark Corcoran, a reporter and producer for the ABC's Foreign Correspondent, responds to an item from this morning's Linkage (in which ecWhy did Petraeus resign?
Stephen Walt says:East Timor: A matter of perspective
Dr John Blaxland is a Senior Fellow at the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, ANU.Monday linkage: China reform, Bond villains, PNG democracy, Fiji and more
China watchers having their Twitter accounts hacked during the Party Congress? (Thanks Danielle.)What Australia can learn from PNG
The recent Lowy Institute PNG New Voices Conference was a much-needed shock to the complacency I have become attuned to as a member of Australia's international policy community.The tabloids and the Asian century
I thought Graeme Dobell's column on the Asian Century White Paper last week was a real cracker. I found this passage particularly reassuring:Asian century: Careful what we wish for
With more than 50 years spent studying, writing about and living in Asia for extended periods, I am at the forefront of those convinced of the need for greater engagement with Asia.India linkage: US-India relations, Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, caste system and more
Danielle Rajendram is a Research Associate in the Lowy Institute's International Security Program whose work focuses on India and China-India relations.Multiculturalism in the Asian Century
What role does Australian multiculturalism have to play as the Asian Century progresses? At a time when the country is reaching out to its neighbours, it seems axiomatic that Australia should celebrate its ethnic diversity and particularly the contribution of its Asian-born citizens.Australia close shave in East Timor
I share Jeffrey Grey's and Albert Palazzo’s conObama II: Implications for Australia
Here's a short video I recorded this morning with Lowy Institute Executive Director Michael Fullilove, focusing mainly on the Australian angle to Obama's victory.DFAT Secretary pulls no punches as he departs for Defence
Annual reports are not noted for their fast pace or thrill factor. They contain lists of activities and achievements; they laboriously detail outputs and summarise outcomes. They sugar-coat and they are often self-congratulatory.Four more years
Stick a fork in it, it's done.Xayaburi dam to go ahead
Finally, after months ofWhy the Chinese Communist Party Congress is so important
The 18th Chinese Communist Party Congress that starts on 8 November is a landmark event, says the Lowy Institute's East Asia Program Director Linda Jakobson in a short video primer on the meeting.US election day linkage
We're all being pummeled by media coverage of the US election just now, so let me offer some links to places you might not have thought to look:Asian Century: A European reaction
Dr Daniel Woker is the former Swiss Ambassador to Australia, Singapore and Kuwait and now a Senior Lecturer at the University of St Gallen.China linkage: Party Congress, round-tripping, Mao thought, mega dams and more
Edward Kus is a Research Associate in the Lowy Institute's East Asia Program.There no peace dividend, just a liability
These views are the author's own and do not reflect those of the Department of Defence or the Australian Government.Reader riposte: The Republicans in 2016
Tim McMinn responds to Nick Bryant's column on the US presidential election:Bob Carr Arab democracy conundrum
Australia's successful ascent to the UN Security Council will require it to address issues it had previously been happy to simply let pass by. One of these is the increasingly hypocritical attitude Western states have adopted towards democratisation in the Middle East.Best political ads of the US campaign
My thanks to Fergus for sending me these links to the Brookings Institution's top 5 Obama commercials andRomney has no margin for error
Where candidates choose to spend their final days is always a tell-tale indicator of the state of a presidential race.Friday funny: Australia in Asia
Just to add a light touch of historical context to this week of intensive Asian Century White Paper coverage (more to come next week), here are somTo defend Australia, we must defend the sea
Hugh White and I have been debating the subject of sea control and sea denial.India linkage: Asian century, rural India, Pakistan relations, economic reform and more
Danielle Rajendram is a Research Associate in the Lowy Institute's International Security Program whose work focuses on India and China-India relations.Asian Century: Marker, map and menu
Australia has shifted a long way beyond the comforting promise that it could engage with Asia without having to change itself.For clarity of policy, just add sunlight
Stuart Robert MP isWhite Paper: Searching for Southeast Asia
Associate Professor Michele Ford is Director of the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre.Reader ripostes: Asian Century White Paper
Below, a comment from Alex Jones, but first, Sinclaire Prowse, a postgraduate student at the US Studies Centre, University of Sydney, writes:Technology and 'irregular' land warfare
Ben Fitzgerald is Managing Director at Noetic Group. He is based in Washington, DC.Thursday linkage: China military, Sandy, Starbucks, carbon trading and more
I missed this yesterday, but still worth noting: a rather, ahem, assertive speech by a senior Chinese military figure in Melbourne yesPNG in the Asian century
Australia is not alone in thinking seriously about the implications of the Asian century. Discussions at the Lowy Institute's PNG New Voices conference last week debated Papua New Guinea's inteAfghanistan? We're against it, sort of
It's not often you hear Australia's combative Opposition Leader Tony Abbott be this generous to the Government: I rise to support the comprehensive statement of the Prime Minister and I welcome this chance to express the Coalition’s support...
