This Month
Australia already pulling its weight on defence, PM to tell Trump
Speaking in Seattle, Anthony Albanese confirmed that he is scheduled to hold his first face-to-face meeting with the US president this week.
The great Trump riddle on China
Nothing with the president’s policy on the Asian nation is predictable. Does he care about Taiwan? Does he want to decouple from Beijing? Let’s toss a coin.
Will Albanese stand up to Trump on trade and defence?
If played carefully, the US will have to accept Canberra can’t be kicked around, if for no other reason than they need the military bases on Australian soil.
April
Trump tariffs cut deep for America’s trillion-dollar ASEAN partners
The damage to Washington’s image and its relationships with the rest of the world, including South-East Asia, may be lasting.
Russia will try again for a South-East Asian airbase, say strategists
Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam could be pressured, according to military analysts, after Indonesia rebuffed a Moscow request for a military presence.
Trump just gave China a free kick to tilt Asia in its favour
Poor South-East Asian and Pacific nations are among the hardest hit by US tariffs, handing an advantage to Beijing in the race for regional influence.
March
China ‘presents’ top military, cybersecurity threat to US
Beijing is using “whole of government” efforts including military, economic and influence operations to assert itself, the American intelligence community said.
Is Taiwan next? China keenly watches Trump dump Ukraine
The US president’s dramatic meltdown with Volodymyr Zelensky raises urgent questions about whether America would support the island if Beijing invaded.
Albanese is as misinformed on the US alliance as live-fire drills
The petulant demand of tribute to the Trump empire and his transactional ethos surely now challenges the agreed balance sheet between Australia and America.
February
Australia seeks insurance for Trump’s ‘America First’ and China’s rise
Foreign Minister Penny Wong says the global security outlook is “increasingly fragile” and authoritarianism is spreading.
Emboldened China signs Pacific mining deal amid Tasman naval drills
A minerals exploration deal between the superpower and the Cook Islands is Beijing’s latest push for influence in a region historically aligned to the West.
‘Unprecedented’: Chinese warships seen 150 nautical miles from Sydney
Australian defence ships are monitoring the ships, which have sailed down the east coast in a big move from China to project power in the Pacific.
Here’s why Australia-Canada ties matter more than ever
Challenges abound as the Trump administration aims to rewrite global trade rules.
January
Canberra should help us help the Pacific, for everyone’s gain
The government should not think businesses can be coerced into operating in the region but remove disincentives, writes TechnologyOne chief executive Ed Chung.
Quad could get surveillance role under Trump: Wong
Foreign Minister Penny Wong met other members of the Quad security dialogue in Washington, including US Security of State Marco Rubio.
Trump, Xi hold telephone call on TikTok, trade, Taiwan
The US president-elect called the chat a “a very good one” and the Chinese leader said that relations can be mutually beneficial.
Can Chinese chips beat Taiwan in the global tech race?
SMIC’s stock rally shows – at least to mainland investors – that China can build a self-sufficient semiconductor ecosystem. But the reality could be different.
Business tapped to foil Chinese influence in the Pacific
The Albanese government is reminding Australian companies that keeping their social licence means operating beyond the nation’s borders.
Seven truths on why Taiwan always will be China’s
Some Australian media recently provided a platform for false Taiwanese views about the one-China policy. Here are the reasons they are wrong.
The new, very dangerous Chinese warplane that isn’t a stealth fighter
The mysterious airborne early warning and control aircraft could give the Asian nation a huge advantage in any military action against Taiwan.