June
- Opinion
- China relations
Why Australia needs to stop being PNG’s payday lender
It might seem a good, neighbourly thing to do. But loans can be damaging as poorly tied aid. The alternative is subsidising direct Australian business investment.
- Carolyn Blacklock
May
No coal, but $31m energy and other aid package for Ukraine
Foreign Minister Penny Wong says giving Ukraine flexibility about how to spend an energy aid package is better than sending a shipload of coal.
- Tess Ikonomou
April
Albanese ‘outraged’ after aid worker’s death as condemnation grows
Israel’s top military commander has apologised for the death of Zomi Frankcom and six colleagues killed in a botched Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
- Andrew Tillett
March
- Opinion
- Papua New Guinea
What China gets right in PNG and Australia gets wrong
This former leader of PNG’s state energy supplier says we should take a leaf from the China playbook by using a “tied aid” model.
- Carolyn Blacklock
Australia ends freeze on $6m for Palestinian aid agency UNRWA
Australia joins Canada, Sweden and the European Union in restoring funding for the organisation after at least 12 countries froze payments in January.
- Andrew Tillett
Dropping aid from planes is expensive and inefficient. Why do it?
Aid professionals say dropping aid from planes is an expensive, inefficient way to deliver much-need supplies, but the US, Jordan, Egypt, and France are forging ahead.
- Sarah Dadouch and Claire Parker
January
Details emerge on UN workers accused of aiding Hamas raid
One is accused of kidnapping a woman. Another is said to have handed out ammunition. A third was described as taking part in a massacre at a kibbutz.
- Ronen Bergman and Patrick Kingsley
June 2023
Aussie Ukrainians scramble to marshal support after dam disaster
Charities are marshalling donations and deploying funds to help the tens of thousands of Ukrainians displaced by the destruction of the dam on the Dnipro River.
- Hans van Leeuwen
November 2022
Andrew Forrest’s family office coinvests with DFAT on Asian investment
Tattarang and the Scalzo family’s private office have co-invested with the government’s Emerging Markets Impact Investment Fund to back female entrepreneurs in Asia.
- Updated
- James Eyers
October 2022
- Exclusive
- Federal budget
The big winners from the $1.4b foreign aid boost
Countries in Asia and the Middle East will get more funding as Australia vies for a UN seat, but the bulk of the budget goes to the Pacific to counter China’s influence.
- Andrew Tillett
September 2022
Aid spending shake-up would help Asia most: experts
A secret proposal to underwrite private investment for development assistance would not put taxpayers’ money at risk.
- Andrew Tillett
- Exclusive
- Australia's China challenge
Use private investment to fight China’s power in Pacific: secret report
A study urged the Morrison government to overhaul Australia’s foreign aid program, including taking direct equity stakes in infrastructure projects.
- Andrew Tillett
May 2022
Ukraine could be start of third world war: Soros
George Soros says Russia’s invasion could spiral into a conflict that might lead to an end of Western civilisation.
- Updated
- Chris Williams and Joe Barnes
- Opinion
- The AFR View
Albanese must put down a Quad marker in Tokyo
The new prime minister should use his debut on the global stage to explicitly signal that Australia’s support for the four-power regional grouping is entirely bipartisan.
- The AFR View
April 2022
Labor to offer thousands of ‘green cards’ for Pacific workers
The ALP has pivoted, promising a US-style lottery that could give permanent residency to thousands of Islanders to try to counter the influence of China.
- Andrew Tillett
AFP under fire after foreign bribery case fails
The former head of engineering firm Sinclair Knight Metz has taken aim at the AFP after being cleared of foreign bribery charges
- Michael Pelly
- Opinion
- Defence
A decade of Solomons blunders rolled out the red carpet for Xi Jinping
The question now is what needs to be done to reverse the erosion of Australia’s credibility in the Pacific.
- Kevin Rudd
March 2022
New $65m Honiara embassy as Pacific aid hits a record
Aid to the Pacific region will be lifted to a record $1.85 billion as Australia urgently seeks to counter Chinese regional engagement.
- Tom Burton
Cardno offloading last vestiges in $56m foreign aid deal
The sale of the international development aid business, with more than 1500 staff, comes amid activity in the ESG sector.
- Liam Walsh
January 2022
Morrison government announces $1m initial Tonga aid package
Australia is expected to send its first C-130 relief flight to Tonga on Tuesday, with more aid likely in coming days as the tsunami damage is assessed.
- Jacob Greber