Lowy Institute Conversations

Australia's Pacific diplomatic blitz and China's missile test

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 05:31:30 +0000

It's been the busiest fortnight in Australia–Pacific diplomacy in recent memory. In the space of ten days, Australia signed the Nakamal Agreement with Vanuatu, the Vuvale Union and a surprise Ocean of Peace Alliance with Fiji, and saw the Pukpuk Treaty with Papua New Guinea come into effect — all while marking Solomon Islands Independence Day and flagging a comprehensive treaty with Honiara by year's end.

On the very same day the Fiji deals were signed, China tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile over the Pacific, sparking claims of a deliberate signal to the region.

Sam Roggeveen is joined by Dr Connor Graham to unpack the missile test, why Pacific nations have responded more cautiously than Australia and New Zealand, and what China really wants from the region.

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The India paradox: Trusted more, but not understood

Wed, 08 Jul 2026 06:41:18 +0000

As India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Australia for the third time, new Lowy Institute polling reveals a curious paradox: Australians now trust India more than the United States or China, yet many Australians can't name its leader. The Lowy Institute’s Dr Ram Sethi Fellow, Dhruva Jaishankar, joins India Chair Shruti Pandalai to analyse what's driving the relationship's rapid growth in defence, trade and education — and why understanding remains stubbornly shallow.

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Southeast Asia in the crossfire: Can ASEAN hold the line?

Tue, 30 Jun 2026 02:24:21 +0000

Southeast Asia has always sat at the intersection of great power competition, but the pressures bearing down on the region today are testing its institutions, alliances and sense of common purpose like never before. Since the United States went to war with Iran and blockaded the Strait of Hormuz, soaring fuel and fertiliser costs have pushed several Southeast Asian nations into a state of emergency. Border tensions, the ongoing civil war in Myanmar, and an increasingly fierce rivalry between Washington and Beijing are all straining the region's capacity to hold together.

In this episode, Lowy Institute Southeast Asia Program Director Hunter Marston speaks with two of the region's leading analysts — Dr Lina Alexandra from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta and Dr Ja-Ian Chong from the National University of Singapore — about what Southeast Asia needs to do to maintain its relevance, its unity, and its peace.

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The nuclear arms race nobody is talking about

Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:06:31 +0000

The New START Treaty has expired, China is quadrupling its nuclear arsenal, and the Trump administration has yet to prioritise arms control. Rose Gottemoeller, a former chief US negotiator of New START and ex-Deputy Secretary General of NATO, speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen about the growing risks of a three-way nuclear stand-off, what the wars in Ukraine and Iran reveal about the future of warfare, and why she will always be a believer in arms control agreements.

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The West's systemic failure to learn from modern war

Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:30:00 +0000

"On pretty much every measure, Putin is failing and he doesn't really have a lot of options moving forward."

Russia is losing ground, its defence industry has plateaued, and Ukraine is striking deeper into Russian territory than at any point in the war. So what does that mean for how the conflict ends — and what can Australia learn from the battlefields of Europe and the Middle East?

Lowy Institute Senior Fellow for Military Studies Mick Ryan joins International Security Program Director Sam Roggeveen to assess the shifting momentum in the Ukraine war, the emergence of a new theory of offensive operations, and why Western militaries — Australia included — are failing to absorb the lessons of modern warfare.

Mick's latest Lowy Institute analysis paper, Modern war and the systemic learning deficit in Western military institutions, is available free on our website.

Australia’s sports diplomacy playbook

Thu, 28 May 2026 00:21:14 +0000

Sport can be one of the great unifying forces in international affairs. But is Australia making the most of its opportunities off the field?

In this episode, Andrew Griffits speaks with Mark Falvo, Interim CEO of Netball Australia and one of Australia’s most experienced sporting administrators, about how Australia approaches major sporting events as tools of foreign policy.

They also cover the diplomatic missed opportunities of the past, the soft power potential of the upcoming 2027 Netball World Cup and 2026 FIFA World Cup, Australia's sporting engagement with Asia and the Pacific, the legacy of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, and the contested line between sports diplomacy and sports-washing.

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Myanmar at a crossroads: Five years after the coup

Thu, 21 May 2026 23:08:39 +0000

Myanmar has been in a state of violent upheaval since the military seized power in 2021, leading to a nationwide resistance and the collapse of vital state functions. Myanmar’s parliament recently convened for the first time in five years, with the former commander-in-chief Min Aung Hlaing appointed as president. Hunter Marston, Director of the Lowy Institute’s Southeast Asia Program, and Sean Turnell, a Senior Fellow in the Southeast Asia Program and former economic adviser to Aung San Suu Kyi, discuss the current state of the resistance in Myanmar, prospects for the country’s economy, and what the international community can do to encourage dialogue between all parties.

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Trump-Xi summit: Has America abandoned strategic competition with China?

Wed, 13 May 2026 20:00:00 +0000

On the eve of the upcoming Trump-Xi summit, Donald Trump's approach to China looks less like strategic competition and more like a search for a deal. In this episode, Richard McGregor speaks with Lowy Institute Nonresident Fellow and former Biden White House official, Thomas Wright, about what the Trump–Xi summit reveals, why the 2025 tariff war ended badly for Washington, and how the Democratic Party is reckoning with its own foreign policy legacy. Wright also makes the case that the world now faces not one American foreign policy, but two — and must plan accordingly.

You can access Tom Wright’s Lowy Institute Paper Inflection Point: Biden, Trump, and the Future World Order here: https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/inflection-point-biden-trump-future-world-order

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Catching up and pulling ahead: Inside America’s 2025 China report

Tue, 12 May 2026 03:01:37 +0000

For years, the conventional wisdom held that the United States retained a decisive lead over China in the technologies and industries that will define the 21st century. The 2025 report of the US–China Economic and Security Review Commission to Congress challenges that view, and its conclusions make for sobering reading.

Ahead of the Trump–Xi summit where trade and technology are on the table, the Commission finds that China has not only caught up with but in multiple sectors now leads advanced economies including the United States. From electric vehicles and solar panels to quantum computing pathways and pharmaceutical supply chains, Beijing’s combination of state direction, entrepreneurial competition, and sustained investment has produced results that Western policymakers are only beginning to reckon with.

In this episode, the Lowy Institute's Richard McGregor speaks with Randy Schriver and Mike Kuiken — vice-chairs of the Commission — about what their report found and what it means. They discuss China’s model of directed innovation, the case for a consolidated US economic statecraft entity, the multiple “choke points” China now holds over industrialised economies, and what sustained engagement in the Pacific, including by Australia, must look like to be effective. They also assess the military situation around Taiwan and the second-order implications of the ongoing conflict with Iran.

Randy Schriver served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs in the first Trump administration. Mike Kuiken is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and a former senior adviser to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

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The decline of the West: Samir Puri on “Westlessness” and the new global order

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 01:01:36 +0000

Samir Puri, former UK diplomat and author of Westlessness: The Great Global Rebalancing, joins Transnational Challenges Program Director Lydia Khalil to explore the long decline of Western dominance in world affairs. They discuss why the rise of the non-West is about far more than China's challenge to the United States, and how the BRICS bloc is reshaping global networks. They also explore what a more multipolar world means for a country like Australia — Western by heritage, but increasingly embedded in Asia.

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Strait of Hormuz crisis: Iran, shipping, and Australia's strategy

Thu, 16 Apr 2026 01:32:03 +0000

When Iran deterred shipping from the Strait of Hormuz following Operation Epic Fury, it sent shockwaves through global energy markets and exposed uncomfortable truths about Australia's dependence on maritime trade.

Jennifer Parker, a Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute and former Royal Australian Navy warfare officer, joins Research Fellow Charlie Lyons-Jones to explain what a naval blockade means for the crisis. They also unpack Australia’s new National Defence Strategy and discuss why Australia’s surface combatant fleet is the smallest it's been since the 1950s.

This episode was recorded on Wednesday 15 April 2026.

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Globalisation always wins: Parag Khanna on the emerging world order, Iran, and Asia's multipolar future

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 01:48:11 +0000

Geopolitical strategist Parag Khanna joins the Lowy Institute's Sam Roggeveen to make sense of a world in flux.

In a wide-ranging conversation recorded on the day President Trump declared the Iran war nearly over, the pair discuss what the conflict reveals about multipolarity, why Mark Carney's Davos speech resonated more than expected, and why every attempt to unwind globalisation ends up deepening it.

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British MP Darren Jones on Labour, Brexit and the United Kingdom's place in the world

Thu, 09 Apr 2026 05:33:10 +0000

British Cabinet Minister the Rt Hon Darren Jones MP joins the Lowy Institute’s Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove AM for a wide-ranging conversation about politics, power and the transatlantic relationship.

Serving as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, and Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister, Jones is one of the most senior figures in PM Keir Starmer's government.

In this episode, Darren Jones and Michael Fullilove discuss the MP’s rise from a council estate in Bristol to the Cabinet table, the lessons UK Labour learned from Hawke and Keating, and why people shouldn't underestimate Keir Starmer.

They also cover the challenge posed by Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, the long shadow of Brexit, how Britain navigates its alliance with President Trump's America, and the strategic logic of AUKUS.

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The ungoverned sky: Drones and the domestic extremist threat

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 03:03:05 +0000

Drone technology is now more accessible than ever. What was once the exclusive domain of state actors now falls within reach of nearly anyone with a credit card and a data signal. Domestic extremists are no exception — they are increasingly incorporating drones into attack plots, taking inspiration from the battlefield. Violent plots utilising drones have increased sharply over the past five years, but governments are underprepared.

In this episode, the Lowy Institute’s James Paterson and Lydia Khalil discuss their policy paper, The ungoverned sky: Drones and the domestic extremist threat, and outline their recommendations for how to address this growing challenge.

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One more in a series of shocks: What the Iran conflict reveals about modern geoeconomics

Thu, 12 Mar 2026 00:24:24 +0000

Lowy Institute Lead Economist Roland Rajah and Nonresident Fellow Jenny Gordon discuss the economic implications of the expanding conflict in Iran. They put recent events in context, unpacking how we should understand and address the ongoing geoeconomic shocks.

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Women, security, power and policy

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 02:37:47 +0000

To mark International Women’s Day, Lowy Institute fellows Susannah Patton and Serena Sasingian speak with Lydia Khalil in a wide-ranging discussion on women in international relations. They explore how gender equality strategies fit into realist power politics, how the global rise of “strongman” politics is threatening hard-won gains for women worldwide, and the relationship between gender equality and national power. They also reflect on their own careers and offer ideas for what meaningful progress could look like.

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Carney's rupture: Rethinking the rules-based order

Wed, 04 Feb 2026 01:23:58 +0000

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered a frank and impassioned speech at this year's World Economic Forum at Davos. He argued that in an era of great power competition, middle powers can no longer afford to maintain the fiction of a rules-based order. While never calling out President Trump by name, Carney highlighted the broader “rupture" in the global order.

Speaking with the Lowy Institute's Sam Roggeveen, Lydia Khalil discusses the value of rhetoric and dissects how Carney's remarks are being viewed in Canberra and other world capitals. While it has been much talked about, will Carney's speech shift how middle powers coordinate globally?

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More on this topic

“Principled and pragmatic: Canada’s path”, Prime Minister Carney addresses the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting
“A rupture, not a transition”:Carney’s new order, Sam Roggeveen, The Interpreter
Nato without America: Europe ‘thinks the unthinkable’, Ben Hall and Henry Foy, Financial Times

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Extremism expert: Rising misogyny is fuelling political violence worldwide

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 04:59:27 +0000

Professor Cynthia Miller-Idriss is a globally recognised expert on violent extremism and prevention, based at American University in Washington, DC. She is the author of a new book, Man Up: The New Misogyny and the Rise of Violent Extremism, which explores how misogyny is driving a surge in extremist violence throughout the West.

Speaking with the Lowy Institute's Lydia Khalil, Professor Miller-Idriss explains the five tactics of misogyny in extremist movements, why Gen Z men are increasingly rejecting women's rights, and what a public health approach to prevention looks like in practice.

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Recast: US Senator Chris Coons on President Trump, AUKUS and the future of the Democratic Party

Thu, 22 Jan 2026 03:50:13 +0000

US Senator Chris Coons joined the Lowy Institute's Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove at the Institute's Bligh Street headquarters for a special episode of Lowy Institute Conversations. They discussed US President Donald Trump's forthcoming meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the first 200 days of President Trump's foreign policy, AUKUS, defence spending, and Senator Coons' optimism about the Democrats’ electoral prospects in 2028.

This episode was first published 15 August 2025.

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Recast: His Father’s Son — The Xi family and the Future of China

Mon, 19 Jan 2026 22:37:13 +0000

Understanding Xi Jinping and what drives him has become a global cottage industry. According to US China scholar Joseph Torigian, one of the keys to understanding Xi Jinping is his father, Xi Zhongxun. How did Xi Senior influence Xi Junior? And what lessons can be drawn from the father for today’s policymaking? Torigian speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Richard McGregor about his new biography, The Party’s Interests Come First.

This episode was first published on 24 October 2025.

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Recast: Cold War prophet

Wed, 14 Jan 2026 22:57:43 +0000

In this episode, Edward Luce, Financial Times columnist and author of Zbig, a new biography of US President Jimmy Carter’s national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski, talks with Sam Roggeveen. They discuss Zbig’s stature as a foreign policy sage, his friendship and rivalry with Henry Kissinger, and what remains of the Washington foreign policy establishment that Zbig symbolised.

This episode was first published on 10 July 2025.

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Recast: Russia's interests in Southeast Asia

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 04:46:58 +0000

Last year, reports emerged of Russia seeking to base military aircraft at Indonesia’s Manuhua Airforce Base. While the request was rejected by Indonesia, it raises a broader question: what are Russia’s interests in Southeast Asia and how should Australia respond to its attempts to seek access to military facilities in the region?

In this podcast, Lowy Institute Research Fellow Rahman Yaacob and Ian Storey, Senior Fellow at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute, talk with host Sam Roggeveen about the significance of these events and Russia's ambitions.

This episode was first published on 4 June 2025.

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Recast: How China won and lost America

Wed, 07 Jan 2026 20:30:00 +0000

As part of the Lowy Institute Recast series, we are republishing the best podcasts of 2025. In case you missed them the first time around or if you want revisit these engaging conversations, the Recast series has you covered.

Lowy Institute Senior Fellow Richard McGregor talks with American sinologist Professor David Shambaugh about his latest book, Breaking the Engagement, which charts the rise and fall of Washington’s engagement strategy with China. They discuss the original aims of the strategy, why it failed, and what lessons Australia can draw.

This episode was first published on 3 July 2025.

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Recast: The future of the Five Eyes

Mon, 05 Jan 2026 20:30:00 +0000

In this episode, host Lydia Khalil speaks with former US Ambassador and Director-General of ASIO Dennis Richardson and Interpreter Managing Editor Daniel Flitton, about the Five Eyes — the powerful and strategically important intelligence sharing alliance. Its member countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, have sustained and protected one of the world's most unified multilateral arrangements for more than 75 years. But even the Five Eyes may not avoid the wrecking ball that is the second Trump administration.

This episode was first published on 1 May 2025.

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Recast: Russia, Trump, and the Ukraine war, with Mick Ryan

Mon, 29 Dec 2025 20:30:00 +0000

Retired Australian Army General Mick Ryan is one of the most influential and prolific analysts of the Ukraine war. This conversation with Sam Roggeveen, Director of the International Security Program, was intended as a reflection on the three-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion, but instead becomes a much broader and deeper conversation about the sensational diplomatic events of the last few weeks, and about America’s role in the world under Trump.

This episode was first published on 21 February 2025.

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City Diplomacy: The role of cities in international relations

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 04:34:57 +0000

Foreign policy is dominated by nation states and international organisations. Yet municipalities are rarely thought of as having a seat at the geopolitical table. Ika Trijsburg, Director of Urban Analytics at the Australian National University, speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Lydia Khalil about how international engagements, conversations, and even negotiations are happening at a city level, as well as the role of cities in addressing global issues.

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Conversations: Small but mighty — Lessons from Baltic national security officials

Mon, 08 Dec 2025 22:11:14 +0000

Since Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the world has come to better recognise the geopolitical importance of the Baltic states. In this episode of Conversations, Executive Director Michael Fullilove is joined by Deividas Matulionis, Chief National Security Adviser to the President of Lithuania, Airis Rikveilis, National Security Adviser to the Prime Minister of Latvia, and Liina Areng, Director of EU CyberNet. Our guests address the war in Ukraine, hybrid threats, and the tightening of connections between authoritarian states.

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Conversations: A Curious Diplomat

Mon, 01 Dec 2025 23:54:26 +0000

Is there an Australian way of diplomacy? How can Australia navigate an increasingly complicated and dangerous world? The Lowy Institute’s Research Director David Dutton speaks with former senior diplomat Lachlan Strahan about his new memoir The Curious Diplomat, in which he takes readers inside the world of Australian diplomacy. In their conversation, Lachlan shares anecdotes and experiences, and reflects on how Australian diplomacy has shifted along with a changing world.

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Conversations: Inside COP30 — A former climate envoy on the United States’ absence and the future of global cooperation

Tue, 25 Nov 2025 04:38:31 +0000

This month, the world gathered in the Amazonian city of Belém for COP30, the UN’s annual climate summit. It was the first time in 30 years that the United States was absent from the talks. Todd Stern, former US Special Envoy for Climate Change under President Obama, spoke to the Lowy Institute’s Ryan Neelam on the ground in Belém about the impact of the US withdrawal from talks, the big issues at COP30, and the challenges and benefits of addressing climate change through multilateral frameworks.

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Conversations: A Pacific Eyes intelligence-sharing agreement

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 02:23:47 +0000

The Pacific Islands face converging transnational and geopolitical threats, yet existing intelligence exchanges are fragmented and inadequate to meet the scale of these challenges. The Lowy Institute’s Oliver Nobetau and Mihai Sora discuss a new policy proposal to create a Pacific Eyes agreement — a dedicated intelligence-sharing framework that could transform regional security cooperation.

You can read about the Pacific Eyes intelligence-sharing agreement here:

https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/pacific-eyes-intelligence-sharing-agreement

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Conversations: Trump, Albanese and critical minerals

Tue, 11 Nov 2025 02:03:54 +0000

What exactly is the nature of the deal struck between the US and Australian governments on critical minerals? How is it different to the agreements Washington later signed with Southeast Asian countries? And why are we worried about supplies of (not very) rare earths anyway? Explore the economics and politics with the Lowy Institute's Sam Roggeveen and Robert Walker.

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Conversations: Australia and the UN Security Council

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 04:32:33 +0000

During his visit to the UN in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese re-declared Australia’s bid for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2029–30. But winning a seat on the world’s apex body is not assured, and the Council itself is facing a crisis of confidence. The Lowy Institute’s Ryan Neelam speaks with former Australian Ambassador to the UN Gary Quinlan AO about the state of the Security Council today, the case for Australia’s bid, and the impact Australia could have on global peace and security as an elected member.

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His Father’s Son: The Xi family and the Future of China.

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 06:28:14 +0000

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Conversations: Critical meeting, critical minerals — Trump and Albanese meet in Washington

Tue, 21 Oct 2025 04:55:11 +0000

The long-awaited meeting between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has finally happened. Lowy Institute Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove talks with Lydia Khalil and gives his take on the meeting’s outcomes and what it means for the US–Australia alliance.

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Conversations: Whither global leadership on counter-terrorism?

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 04:44:33 +0000

Until his retirement from government this year, Nick Rasmussen has worked in counter-terrorism and countering violent extremism under successive Republican and Democratic administrations in the United States since the September 11 attacks in 2001, including under the first Trump administration. In this conversation, the Lowy Institute’s Lydia Khalil speaks with Nick about the significant changes the Trump administration has made to CT/CVE policy and how allies can adjust.

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Conversations: Pukpuk, Indonesia, and the Philippines-Taiwan connection

Thu, 09 Oct 2025 21:59:03 +0000

Join Sam Roggeveen and Interpreter Managing Editor Daniel Flitton for a conversation about what we covered this month in Australia’s best foreign affairs magazine, The Interpreter.

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Conversations: First among equals — How the US should adjust to a multipolar world

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 06:54:28 +0000

Washington’s foreign policy establishment is still reluctant to internalise the fact that the United States has entered a multipolar era, says Emma Ashford, Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center. In this conversation, Ashford talks with the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen about her new book, First Among Equals, and the urgent need for a more realistic American foreign policy.

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Conversations: Understanding influence in Southeast Asia

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 23:36:55 +0000

Southeast Asia is one of the most geopolitically diverse and contested regions of the world. But does China or the United States have more influence? And is it even accurate to describe the region’s geopolitics in these terms? Research Director Hervé Lemahieu talks with two of the authors of the newly launched Southeast Asia Influence Index, Susannah Patton and Rahman Yaacob.

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Conversations: Understanding global democratic decline

Tue, 23 Sep 2025 05:13:35 +0000

We're in a global democratic recession. Not only is the number of democratic nations in decline, but so are democratic institutions and norms. What's going on? Sam Roggeveen talks with Lydia Khalil, co-author of the Lowy Institute's newest interactive, Understanding Democratic Erosion, about the complex dynamics and whether there is a way back.

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Conversations: The Beijing parade, controversy in the Pacific, wither the Quad, and nuclear reactors on the Moon — This month in The Interpreter

Fri, 05 Sep 2025 03:27:15 +0000

Join Lydia Khalil and Interpreter Managing Editor Daniel Flitton for a conversation about what we covered this month in Australia’s best foreign affairs magazine, The Interpreter.

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Conversations: Mick Ryan on Trump's Ukraine folly

Tue, 02 Sep 2025 06:21:37 +0000

The Trump–Putin summit in Alaska left the Russian leader smiling and the United States without concrete results, says Lowy Institute Senior Fellow for Military Studies Mick Ryan. In this conversation, Sam Roggeveen asks Mick Ryan about the battlefield situation in Ukraine and the lessons of the war for the Asia-Pacific.

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How can we eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online?

Fri, 29 Aug 2025 06:58:40 +0000

The 2019 Christchurch terror attacks tragically highlighted how online capabilities can be exploited by bad actors. Since that time, there has been a concerted global effort by governments, tech companies and civil society to come together to mitigate these risks. But online extremism is a persistent challenge. The Institute's Lydia Khalil talks with Paul Ash, Chief Executive of the Christchurch Call Foundation(christchurchcall.org), about evolving online threats and how global coordination is becoming more complicated.

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Conversations: Indonesian foreign policy under President Prabowo

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 21:00:00 +0000

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has travelled relentlessly since his inauguration in October 2024. Yet questions remain about the direction of Indonesian foreign policy under his leadership. How will Indonesia manage its relationships with China, the United States and Russia? And what role will it play within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)? In this episode, the Institute's Susannah Patton discusses these questions with Dr Dino Patti Djalal, founder of the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia, and former Indonesian Ambassador to the United States.

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Conversations: US Senator Chris Coons on President Trump, AUKUS and the future of the Democratic Party

Fri, 15 Aug 2025 06:29:24 +0000

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Conversations: Vacating the lane in the Pacific

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 03:21:08 +0000

Washington says the Pacific is a critical arena for strategic competition, yet recent US actions suggest otherwise. In this episode, the Institute’s Mihai Sora talks with Dr Charles Edel, Australia Chair at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, and Kathryn Paik, Senior Fellow and Deputy Director with the Australia Chair, about America’s Pacific drawdown, what’s at stake for US and regional security, and whether Australia and its partners are ready, or able, to hold the line.

You can find a complete archive of all our Lowy Institute publications including our podcasts here: https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications

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Conversations - Separate or Intertwined? How will Australia Manage its relationships with China and the United States

Thu, 24 Jul 2025 06:31:35 +0000

Traditionally, Australian governments have tried to pursue the relationships with its main trading partner and its security guarantor in parallel. Now that the dynamics are becoming increasingly intertwined, how will Australia make its way forward? Lowy Institute Program Director Sam Roggeveen and Senior Fellow for East Asia Richard McGregor discuss Australian PM Anthony Albanese’s recent six-day visit to China and outline what it signals about Australia’s relationship, not only with Beijing, but with Washington and regional neighbours.

You can find a complete archive of all our Lowy Institute podcasts here:

https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications?keys=&author=All&type=194&issues=All&related_issue

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Conversations: AUKUS, war literature, and the lost art of letter writing

Fri, 18 Jul 2025 03:04:43 +0000

Join Sam Roggeveen and Dan Flitton for a conversation about what was covered this week on Australia’s best foreign policy magazine, The Interpreter.

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Conversations: Cold War prophet

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 00:28:16 +0000

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Conversations: How China won and lost America

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 06:35:08 +0000

Lowy Institute Senior Fellow Richard McGregor talks with American sinologist Professor David Shambaugh about his latest book, Breaking the Engagement, which charts the rise and fall of Washington’s engagement strategy with China. They discuss the original aims of the strategy, why it failed, and what lessons Australia can draw.

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Conversations: Missile diplomacy in the Middle East

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 05:03:57 +0000

The Institute’s Director of Research Hervé Lemahieu and Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove discuss the US and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, Iran’s response, and the uncertainty of a reported ceasefire. They analyse the strategic stakes, the role of diplomacy and international institutions, and the risks and advantages of President Donald Trump’s unpredictability.

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Conversations: Russia's interests in Southeast Asia

Wed, 04 Jun 2025 03:57:23 +0000

Earlier this year, reports emerged of Russia seeking to base military aircraft at Indonesia’s Manuhua Airforce Base. While the request was rejected by Indonesia, it raises a broader question: what are Russia’s interests in Southeast Asia and how should Australia respond to its attempts to seek access to military facilities in the region?

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Conversations: Pakistani spies, Australian ‘mercenaries’ and the future of Asian trade — This week in The Interpreter

Fri, 30 May 2025 00:14:44 +0000

Join Sam Roggeveen and Managing Editor Daniel Flitton for a conversation about what we covered this week in Australia’s best foreign affairs magazine, The Interpreter.

Further reading:

Sadly, Russia’s mercenary verdict means Oscar Jenkins won’t be coming home anytime soon by Donald Rothwell

Why Oscar Jenkins’ trial in the Luhansk People’s Republic is a sham by Shannon Bosch

US troops in Korea may soon switch focus from Pyongyang to Beijing by Gabriela Bernal

The CPTPP dilemma: Economic merit versus geopolitical calculation by Peter Varghese

Abnormal states: Kashmir between empire, insurgency, and intrigue by Abhijnan Rej

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Conversations: The future of warfare

Fri, 23 May 2025 06:26:05 +0000

In this episode, we bring you highlights of a recent Lowy Institute event on the future of warfare. Christian Brose, President and Chief Strategy Officer of Anduril Industries, and Sam Roggeveen, Director of the Lowy Institute’s International Security Program discuss the key trends in modern warfare revealed through the world’s ongoing armed conflicts. They share their thoughts on how any future wars between major powers are likely to be fought.

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Conversations: Australia’s Asia-Pacific policy after the Labor landslide

Fri, 09 May 2025 01:44:04 +0000

Anthony Albanese has been returned as Australia’s prime minister in a landslide. In this episode, Program Directors Mihai Sora and Susannah Patton speak with host Lydia Khalil about what that means for the region. They discuss how Albanese’s re-election is being received in the Pacific and Southeast Asia and examine the continuities, opportunities and challenges for Australia’s foreign policy over the government’s second term.

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Conversations: The future of the Five Eyes

Thu, 01 May 2025 06:03:53 +0000

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Conversations: The Trump effect and the Australian election — 2025 Lowy Institute Poll preview

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 05:25:41 +0000

With US President Donald Trump unleashing a blitz of policy changes in his first few months in office and an Australian federal election just ahead, the Lowy Institute has released selected results from the 2025 Lowy Institute Poll. The findings provide a snapshot of how Trump is changing Australian attitudes towards the United States, and on Australians’ confidence in their political leaders’ foreign policy abilities. Ryan Neelam, Director of Public Opinion and Foreign Policy, talks with host Lydia Khalil to put these early poll results into context.

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Conversations: Myanmar earthquake and its political aftershocks

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 00:18:32 +0000

Two weeks ago, Myanmar was struck by a 7.7 magnitude earthquake that devastated much of the central heartland of the country. Already ravaged by civil war, the destruction and humanitarian crisis caused by the earthquake have brought the country to the brink. The Lowy Institute’s Hervé Lemahieu talks with Vicky Bowman CMG, the Director of the Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business — and previously UK Ambassador to Myanmar and a political prisoner under its junta — to discuss the earthquake’s humanitarian and economic impact, prospects for a political settlement to the civil war, and how the International community can best engage the country from here.

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Conversations: Global developments you may have missed

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 23:48:25 +0000

Since his election, foreign policy coverage has been dominated by US President Donald Trump. But there is a lot more going on in the world than Trump 2.0. Many important global developments are not getting the attention they deserve. The Lowy Institute’s Lydia Khalil and Daniel Flitton, Managing Editor of The Interpreter, highlight the stories you might have missed.

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China’s naval flotilla and Australia’s response

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 05:41:41 +0000

Defence analyst Marcus Hellyer talks with the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen about the unprecedented appearance of Chinese warships off Australia’s east coast. What message was Beijing sending? How well did Australia’s defence force perform in response? And what are Australia‘s future options with the United States in retrenchment?

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Conversations: Trump 2.0 and the world after Munich

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 05:56:19 +0000

After attending this month's Munich Security Conference, the Institute's Hervé Lemahieu speaks with Lydia Khalil about the Trump administration’s diplomatic cavalry charge on Europe, and lessons for Australia.

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Russia, Trump, and the Ukraine war, with Mick Ryan

Fri, 21 Feb 2025 05:30:35 +0000

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Conversations: Many One-Chinas and the contest to define Taiwan

Wed, 29 Jan 2025 02:25:55 +0000

Dr Benjamin Herscovitch at ANU and the Lowy Institute’s Hervé Lemahieu discuss the growing global support for China’s efforts to bring Taiwan under its control, potentially via the use of force. As diplomatic stances on Taiwan become more contested and consequential, the Lowy Institute has published a world-first dataset detailing every UN member state’s position on the governments in Taipei and Beijing. The Data Snapshot offers an original framework for understanding the state of international diplomacy on Taiwan’s status: https://interactives.lowyinstitute.org/features/one-china-contest-to-define-taiwan/

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Conversations: First Nations Foreign Policy with Megan Davis

Wed, 22 Jan 2025 22:47:03 +0000

First Nations peoples were Australia’s original diplomats and traders. In recent years, the Australian government has sought to embed First Nations perspectives, experiences and interests into Australia’s foreign policy. Yet after the loss in the referendum to create a Voice to Parliament, there are questions about how to further these efforts. In this episode of Conversations, Lowy Institute First Nations Fellow Laura Salt speaks with Professor Megan Davis about the way forward for Australia’s First Nations foreign policy. Professor Davis is a constitutional law expert, international human rights lawyer, and one of the architects of the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

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Lowy Institute Re-Cast: Conversations: Hostage diplomacy with Sean Turnell

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 23:00:00 +0000

As part of the Lowy Institute Re-Cast series, we are republishing the best podcasts of 2024. In case you missed them the first time around or if you want revisit these engaging conversations, the Re-Cast series has you covered.

Hostage-taking and arbitrary detention by both state and non-state actors are on the rise. The Lowy Institute’s Sean Turnell, himself wrongfully imprisoned for two years in Myanmar, and Lydia Khalil discuss hostage diplomacy, its personal and global impacts and what can be done about it.

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Lowy Institute Re-Cast: Conversations: Michel Barnier on the world after Brexit

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 23:00:00 +0000

In this episode, Michel Barnier, Europe’s former point man on Brexit negotiations, speaks with Hervé Lemahieu. Four years on, what lessons should the West draw from Brexit? How united is Europe in the face of populism at home and with new challenges on its doorstep, including the war in Ukraine? And are China and Russia two faces of the same threat?

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Lowy Institute Re-Cast: Conversations: Regulating Big Tech Is global coordination possible

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 23:00:00 +0000

Australian eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant leads the world’s first government regulatory agency committed to keeping its citizens safer online. While her appointment is domestic, the internet is global. In this episode of Conversations, the Lowy Institute’s Lydia Khalil talks with Inman Grant about what she learned from her previous experience working in the tech industry, how to regulate it, global efforts to coordinate online safety, particularly around AI, and the geopolitics of tech regulation.

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Conversations: Transition to Trump

Wed, 18 Dec 2024 21:31:23 +0000

Plans for Donald Trump's second-term inauguration are well underway, with his transition team straight to work announcing appointments. Lowy Institute Executive Director Dr Michael Fullilove has recently returned from the United States where he met with a number of outgoing and incoming officials. For the final episode of 2024, he spoke with Lowy Institute Fellow Lydia Khalil about the new Trump administration.

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Conversations: Ream Naval Base – China’s foothold in Cambodia?

Tue, 10 Dec 2024 00:27:44 +0000

Lowy Institute's Research Fellow Dr Rahman Yaacob, recently traveled to Cambodia to investigate the controversial Ream Naval Base. In this podcast, Rahman shared his insights with Sam Roggeveen, Director of the International Security Program. They discuss how the Ream Naval Base plays into Cambodias strategic positioning and the broader context of US-China geopolitical competition.

Read and download the Lowy Institute Analysis “Partnership of convenience: Ream Naval Base and the Cambodia–China convergence” by Dr Rahman Yacoub

Link - https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/partnership-convenience-ream-naval-base-cambodia-china-convergence

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Conversations: Chris Bowen on climate action in the shadow of Trump

Mon, 18 Nov 2024 23:05:48 +0000

Less than a week after Donald Trump’s historic election victory, world experts gathered in Baku, Azerbaijan, for COP29, the UN’s annual summit on climate change. The Hon Chris Bowen MP, Australia’s Minister for Climate Change and Energy, holds a central role at this year’s summit, as co-chair of negotiations on a new global climate finance goal. He speaks to the Lowy Institute’s Ryan Neelam about global climate action in the age of Trump, Australia’s climate ambitions, and the challenges facing the world in a new, more turbulent era of geopolitics.

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Conversations: Trump returns — what now?

Fri, 08 Nov 2024 01:15:37 +0000

In this episode of Conversations, the Lowy Institute's Dr Michael Fullilove and Hervé Lemahieu discuss Donald Trump's remarkable political comeback. What will a second Trump presidency mean for America's allies, adversaries, and the fence-sitters? And how should Australia deal with Mr Trump in the Oval Office?

You can also read our special feature on Trump 2.0, as well as Dr Fullilove’s essay for The Atlantic.

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Conversations: Hostage diplomacy with Sean Turnell

Tue, 15 Oct 2024 00:40:05 +0000

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Conversations: The global impact of a Harris or Trump victory

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 05:03:33 +0000

With less than a month to go before one of the most consequential presidential elections in US history, Lowy Institute experts Lydia Khalil, Hervé Lemahieu and Sam Roggeveen sit down to discuss what a potential Trump or Harris administration would mean for the United States and its relationships with allies and adversaries. Drawing on two recently published Lowy Institute interactive features in which Institute experts assess the policies, outlooks and approach to the world of the candidates, they unpack what two very different yet similarly enigmatic candidates would bring to the world stage. You can read more here.

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2024 Asia Power Index Results

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 02:10:06 +0000

Each year, the Lowy Institute’s Asia Power Index (API) provides the authoritative guide to the distribution of power in Asia. In the first of a three part series on the API, index authors Susannah Patton, Jack Sato and Hervé Lemahieu discuss the findings of the latest edition, including the outlook for US-China competition, the relative influence of India and Japan, and how other regional countries fare overall.

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Debating the inevitability of US confrontation with China - Part two

Thu, 19 Sep 2024 05:45:10 +0000

Dmitri Alperovitch is the author of World on the Brink: How America Can Beat China in the Race for the 21st Century. In this Lowy Institute Conversation, he talks with Sam Roggeveen about China’s ambitions, why Taiwan is so important, the military balance in Asia, and much more.

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Debating the inevitability of US confrontation with China - Part one

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 22:53:22 +0000

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Regulating Big Tech: Is global coordination possible?

Mon, 26 Aug 2024 23:07:27 +0000

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Ross Babbage on why the AUKUS submarines matter

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 06:11:30 +0000

Defence expert Ross Babbage talks with the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen about his new research paper, Deterrence and Alliance Power: Why the AUKUS Submarines Matter and how they can be Delivered. They discuss not just the viability of the project – can US and UK shipyards deliver? – but its justifications. Why does Australia need these submarines?

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South China Sea: Politics, alliances and regional dynamics

Thu, 08 Aug 2024 05:03:32 +0000

In the final episode of our series on the South China Sea, host Susannah Patton and Lowy Institute colleague Richard McGregor debate the implications of the recent tensions at Second Thomas Shoal for Beijing’s strategy, the credibility of US alliances, and the considerations of other regional countries such as Australia.

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Conversations: What can the US do about the South China Sea?

Wed, 31 Jul 2024 06:24:58 +0000

In part three of our South China Sea series, Dr Michael Mazarr speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Susannah Patton about the US’ strategy in the South China Sea. The United States has few easy options for countering China’s coercion of its ally the Philippines. Dr Mazarr of the RAND Corporation argues that the United States needs to plan for a scenario in which China gains control over the disputed Second Thomas Shoal and focus on how it can shore up other outposts controlled by the Philippines.

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Conversations: Biden out, Kamala in – will it change anything?

Mon, 22 Jul 2024 06:53:57 +0000

In this special episode of Conversations, the Lowy Institute’s Dr Michael Fullilove and Hervé Lemahieu discuss US President Joe Biden’s momentous decision overnight to withdraw from his bid for a second term.

In the past three weeks, US politics has been reshaped before our eyes. A resurgent former president Donald Trump, emerging from an attempt on his life, appears stronger than ever. Meanwhile, after weeks of defying calls to withdraw from the race, Joe Biden abruptly abandoned his bid for a second term as US president. Will it be enough to turn things around for the Democratic Party, and where does the United States go from here?

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Conversations: Beijing’s South China Sea gambit

Thu, 18 Jul 2024 23:25:17 +0000

In part two of our South China Sea series, Dr Oriana Skylar Mastro speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Susannah Patton about China’s objectives in the region.

Beijing is pursuing an aggressive strategy to push out the United States and prevent Southeast Asian claimant states, especially the Philippines, from exercising their sovereign rights.

Dr Mastro, Center Fellow at Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies Stanford University, Nonresident Scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and author ofUpstart: How China Became a Great Power, explains the military, political and legal dimensions of China’s approach, which has gone relatively unchecked by the United States and its allies, until now.

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Conversations: Sweden’s Defence Minister, Pål Jonson

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 01:05:42 +0000

The Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen spoke with Sweden’s defence minister, Pål Jonson, during his recent visit to Australia. Prior to his ministerial career, Jonson worked in Sweden’s Defence Research Agency, and his depth of knowledge about not just European security but also Asia comes through in this interview. Roggeveen asks Jonson why Swedes should care about Asia, whether Europe is doing enough to help Ukraine, and why Sweden chose to join NATO now.

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Conversations: Manila charts its course

Tue, 09 Jul 2024 05:34:54 +0000

Tensions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea have reached their highest level in more than a decade. The risk of escalation, even conflict, between the two countries could test the credibility of the Philippines’ alliance with the United States.

In the first of a series focused on the South China Sea tensions, Susannah Patton, Director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute, discusses the Philippines’ strategy with Jonathan Malaya, Assistant Director-General of the National Security Council of the Philippines and the spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Taskforce, the key body that coordinates Philippine agencies’ policy on the South China Sea.

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Stabilisation vs Confrontation: The US, China and Australia

Fri, 05 Jul 2024 00:12:59 +0000

Since the Albanese government was elected, Australia has focused on stabilising relations with China. But there are limits to Australia’s ability to successfully pursue stabilisation if there remains a spectre of confrontation between its largest trading partner and its key security guarantor, the United States. Do either the US or China genuinely want to stabilise bi-lateral ties? And if they do, what is standing in the way? One reason is Taiwan, and Beijing’s campaign of encirclement of the island, a slow-motion strategy which, while it does not attract the same headlines as a possible invasion, can nevertheless achieve the same ends. Richard McGregor, Senior Fellow for East Asia at the Lowy Institute, discusses US-China competition, Taiwan, and more with Washington-based China scholars, Jude Blanchette and Dan Blumenthal.

Jude Blanchette is the Freeman Chair in China Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Dan Blumenthal is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who served as the senior director for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia at the Pentagon in the George W. Bush administration.

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Conversations: Michel Barnier on the world after Brexit

Thu, 09 May 2024 02:04:59 +0000

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Conversations: The Stakes of Diplomacy - 2024 Global Diplomacy Index

Tue, 16 Apr 2024 08:21:37 +0000

In this episode, the Lowy Institute’s Research Director Hervé Lemahieu talks with Ryan Neelam, the Institute’s Director of the Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program about the findings of the recently launched 2024 Global Diplomacy Index. What do diplomatic networks tell us about superpower rivalry, geopolitical competition, and a more multipolar world order? How do nations use diplomacy to build influence, and where are they targeting their investments? What does Australia’s relative underinvestment in diplomacy mean for its ability to advance its interests? In a broad-ranging discussion, Hervé and Ryan explore the often overlooked role of diplomacy in shaping the modern world.

2024 Global Diplomacy Index: https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/

2024 Global Diplomacy Index – Key Findings Report: https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/key_findings

America, take heed — China is winning the diplomacy race: Financial Times opinion piece by Ryan Neelam: https://www.ft.com/content/2a63a19b-1fed-4c1a-9f75-e09f5708a8c6

Australia’s ‘diplomatic deficit’ harms our global presence: Canberra Times opinion piece by Ryan Neelam and Hervé Lemahieu: https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/australia-s-diplomatic-deficit-harms-our-global-presence

Five surprises from Lowy’s Global Diplomacy Index: Lowy Institute Interpreter article by Jack Sato:https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/five-surprises-lowy-s-global-diplomacy-index

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Conversations: Digital threats to democracy, with Lydia Khalil

Tue, 12 Mar 2024 21:17:13 +0000

In this episode, the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen talks with his colleague, Research Fellow on Transnational Challenges Lydia Khalil, about her new research paper, Overcoming digital threats to democracy. The internet and social media are now our digital public square, yet these spaces are not governed that way. Lydia proposes that tech giants look to “deliberative democracy” practices — where small but representative groups of people make decisions after deliberating on issues in depth — to address issues of fairness and legitimacy in internet governance.

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Conversations: The comeback general — Prabowo’s thumping victory and what it means for Indonesia

Thu, 15 Feb 2024 23:54:20 +0000

In this special episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Director of Research Hervé Lemahieu talks with three experts about the outcome of Indonesia's presidential election on 14 February 2024. Quick counts point to a landslide victory for Prabowo Subianto. What drove this result? Who is the 72-year-old Prabowo? And what kind of Indonesia can we expect under his presidency? Listen to the discussion with Professor Dewi Fortuna Anwar, Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute, Dr Fakhridho (Ridho) Susrahadiansyah Bagus Pratama Susilo, Senior Analyst at Bower Group Asia, and Dr Abdul Rahman Yaacob, Research Fellow in the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute.

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Conversations: Tamir Hayman on Ukraine, Iran, and the future of intelligence

Tue, 05 Sep 2023 05:46:32 +0000

During a brief visit to Sydney, Major General (Ret'd) Tamir Hayman, Managing Director of the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel, offered the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen his unique insights on where momentum now lies in the Ukraine war, whether Iran will pursue a nuclear weapon or stop just short of building one, and the role of secret intelligence in an age of ‘information super-abundance’.

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Conversations: Thailand’s murky election aftermath

Fri, 11 Aug 2023 03:30:00 +0000

In May 2023, Thailand held a general election. Now nearly three months after the vote, there's no new prime minister, no new government and the largest party in parliament, Move Forward, won't lead the country. Dr Gregory Raymond at the Australian National University sits down with Lowy Institute Research Director Herve Lemahieu to discuss the murky state of affairs in Thai politics and what could happen next.

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Is Southeast Asia a multipolar region?

Mon, 10 Jul 2023 06:02:35 +0000

In this episode of Conversations, Director of the Southeast Asia Program Susannah Patton talks with Thomas Parks, author of the recently published book, Southeast Asia’s Multipolar Future: Averting a New Cold Warabout how Southeast Asian countries are navigating growing US-China rivalry and the roles of the region’s diverse external partners, including Japan, Australia and India. Parks is optimistic about the future of the region, but also highlights emerging risks that could threaten Southeast Asian countries’ ability to remain non-aligned and open to all partners.

Thomas Parks has led research and managed aid programs across Southeast Asia with The Asia Foundation and the Australian government (DFAT) on geopolitics, security cooperation, ASEAN, economic development, conflict and governance. He is a graduate of Harvard and Johns Hopkins SAIS. His new book, Southeast Asia’s Multipolar Future, is published by Bloomsbury.

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Bobo Lo on Russia, Wagner and the Ukraine War

Thu, 29 Jun 2023 02:05:02 +0000

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Nonresident Fellow Dr Bobo Lo speaks with International Security Program Director Sam Roggeveen about the attempted coup by elements of the Wagner paramilitary group led by Yevgeny Prigozhin. They discuss the mutiny, the likely impact on Russia’s leadership, and what effect it will have on the future direction of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Dr Bobo Lo is a Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute and a Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) in Washington, DC, and an Associate Research Fellow at the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI). Previously, he was Head of the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House, and Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Moscow. He is the author of a number of books including the Lowy Institute Paper A Wary Embrace: What the China–Russia Relationship Means for the World. He has an MA from Oxford and a PhD from Melbourne University.

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Max Grömping and Jessica Teets on Lobbying the Autocrat

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 00:33:49 +0000

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Project Director and Research Fellow Dr Jennifer Hsu talks with Dr Max Grömping and Professor Jessica Teets to explore how lobbying by civil society organisations works in an authoritarian context. Using case studies from China, Russia, Belarus, Cambodia, Malaysia, Montenegro, Turkey and Zimbabwe, Lobbying the Autocrat explores how citizen advocacy organisations carve out niches in the authoritarian policy process, even influencing policy outcomes.

Dr Max Grömping is senior lecturer at the School of Government and International Relations at Griffith University (Australia). His research interests include lobbying and advocacy in different political regime contexts, disinformation, and electoral integrity. He previously worked as lecturer at Heidelberg University (Germany), research associate at the University of Sydney (Australia), and instructor in international relations at Thammasat University (Thailand). Max is an affiliate of the International Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE), and associate editor for the journal Democratization. His work has been published in academic journals such as Political Communication, Governance, Party Politics, and Policy Sciences, among others.

Professor Jessica C. Teets is Professor of Political Science at Middlebury College and Templeton Fellow for the Asia Program at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI). Her research focuses on governance in authoritarian regimes, especially the role of civic participation. She is the author of Civil Society Under Authoritarianism: The China Model (Cambridge University Press, 2014), editor (with William Hurst) of Local Governance Innovation in China: Experimentation, Diffusion, and Defiance (Routledge Contemporary China Series, 2014), and editor (with Max Grömping) of Lobbying the Autocrat: The Dynamics of Policy Advocacy in Nondemocracies (University of Michigan Press, 2023).

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Conversations: Vietnam’s foreign policy outlook

Thu, 25 May 2023 23:43:03 +0000

In this episode of Conversations, Susannah Patton, Director of the Lowy Institute’s Southeast Asia Program, talks with Dr Nguyen Hung Son, Vice President of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. They discuss Vietnam’s foreign policy outlook, relations with external partners, including Australia, and how Vietnam sees key regional issues such as the South China Sea, Taiwan, and the conflict in Myanmar. Dr Son highlights Vietnam’s continued focus on diplomacy within ASEAN, as well as its interest in a regional balance of power that could lower the risk of conflict.

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The future of the World Bank: In conversation with Vice President for East Asia and Pacific, Manuela V. Ferro

Mon, 15 May 2023 03:21:51 +0000

The World Bank recently released its “Evolution Roadmap”, aimed at responding more efficiently to growing poverty reduction needs and better addressing climate change challenges.

While the roadmap provides a good starting point — outlining the evolution of the bank's mission, operations and financing model — it falls short in providing concrete and detailed strategies to achieve an ambitious reform.

To discuss the roadmap and the future of the World Bank, Deputy Director of the Lowy Institute’s Indo-Pacific Development Centre Alexandre Dayant sat with Manuela V. Ferro, the World Bank Vice President for East Asia and Pacific. An economist and engineer by training, Ms Ferro has more than 25 years of hands-on and leadership experience in Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia. She has shaped creative development solutions for multiple and diverse countries, from post-conflict low-income nations to upper middle-income states.

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Military Strategist Mick Ryan on Australia’s Defence Strategic Review

Fri, 28 Apr 2023 01:34:40 +0000

On Monday 24 April 2023, Australia’s government published the public version of its Defence Strategic Review, a report it commissioned on coming to office to set the agenda for reforms to the posture and structure of the Australian Defence Force. Positioned alongside the government’s commitment to the AUKUS security agreement, the Review and the government’s response to it have signalled major changes to how Australia intends to invest in military technology, hardware and personnel over the next two decades.

In this new episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, military strategist Mick Ryan discusses the Review with the Institute’s International Security Program Director Sam Roggeveen. They discuss what the report reveals about Australia’s plans for its military, but also what is missing. They also talk about defence bureaucracy, the role of the Ukraine war in Australia’s strategic thinking, and challenges for the future leadership of Australia’s armed forces.

Major General (Ret’d) Mick Ryan is a Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute. He spent 35 years in the Australian Army. His operational service includes deployments to East Timor, Iraq and southern Afghanistan. His book, War Transformed: The Future of Twenty-First-Century Great Power Competition and Conflict, was published in 2022.

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Conversations: Nuclear threats, non-proliferation and Australia

Sun, 18 Dec 2022 23:00:00 +0000

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Hervé Lemahieu discusses the continuing threat of nuclear weapons, global efforts at arms control and Australia's interactions with the global non-proliferation regime around its proposed acquisition of nuclear submarine technology under the AUKUS agreement. He speaks with Australia's Ambassador for Arms Control and Counter-proliferation Ian Biggs, Program Officer for Nuclear Materials Security Jessica Bufford and Dr Geoffrey Shaw, Director-General of the Australian Safeguards and Non-proliferation Office (ASNO).

Ian Biggs was appointed Ambassador for Arms Control and Counter-Proliferation in January 2022 and leads Australia's international advocacy on global arms control, non-proliferation and disarmament. He has previously served as Australia's Ambassador to Iran (2016-19), Turkey (2011-14) and Saudi Arabia (2005-08) and has previously served in postings in Iraq, India, Austria and Syria. Ambassador Biggs has also served as Secretary of the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament, Chair of the Australia Group, Special Assistant to the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency and Chair of the Nuclear Suppliers Group's Dual Use Regime. He holds a Master of Arts (International Relations) from the Australian National University and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Sydney.

Jessica Bufford serves as a program officer in the Nuclear Material Security team at the Nuclear Threat Initiative - a nonprofit, nonpartisan global security organization focused on reducing nuclear and biological threats imperiling humanity. Prior to joining NTI, she worked in the Division of Nuclear Security at the IAEA. She has also worked on materials management and minimization at the US Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration, and worked previously at NTI as a Herbert J. Scoville Fellow. She received a master’s degree in nonproliferation and terrorism studies, with a certificate in conflict resolution, from the Monterey Institute of International Studies and a bachelor’s degree in political science and French from Austin College.

Dr Geoffrey Shaw was appointed to the position of Director General, Australian Safeguards and Non-proliferation Office (ASNO) in 2022. He is responsible for Australia’s implementation and compliance with regard to the Nuclear Non‑proliferation Treaty, Chemical Weapons Convention and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. Prior to this appointment, Dr Shaw has most recently served as Australia’s High Commissioner to Pakistan, Australia’s Ambassador for People Smuggling and Human Trafficking and the Representative of the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to the United Nations. Previously, Dr Shaw served as the Special Assistant for Policy to the Director General of the IAEA and Australia’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament.

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Conversations: Malaysian politics after the election - what to expect from Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim?

Wed, 07 Dec 2022 19:00:00 +0000

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Susannah Patton talks to Amrita Malhi, senior development policy adviser and Honorary Senior Lecturer at Flinders History and the Humanities Research Centre at the Australian National University, about the political outlook for Malaysia following the November general election. The election saw victory for Anwar Ibrahim’s multi-racial coalition, which has now formed a national unity government. What drove this result, and will Malaysia see greater political stability than it has endured since the 2018 election? What kind of international role is Prime Minister Anwar likely to pursue?

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Conversations: Xueyin Zha on WeChat’s role in Australian democracy as seen from the grassroots.

Wed, 26 Oct 2022 23:19:15 +0000

In this episode of Conversations, Hervé Lemahieu talks with Xueyin Zha and Jennifer Hsu about the Chinese messaging app and the role in it plays in the democratic participation of Chinese-Australians. They discuss the inherent risks and drawbacks of WeChat, such as censorship, but also explore how it became a medium of outreach and civic engagement for Chinese-Australians during the 2021 New South Wales local elections.

Xueyin Zha is a doctoral candidate at the Australian National University, researching the global governance of advanced technology. She is also a researcher at ANU's interdisciplinary research project: Humanising Machine Intelligence. Her current research interests span technology regulation, international politics of the digital economy, and technology's role in multiculturalism.

Jennifer Hsu is a Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute’s Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program. She works on the Multiculturalism, Identity and Influence Project.

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Conversations: Nixi Cura on Chinese soft power ahead of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party

Thu, 13 Oct 2022 20:41:38 +0000

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Research Fellow Jennifer Hsu talks with Nixi Cura to explore and assess some of China’s major soft power initiatives, including its successes and failures over the last five years. They discuss the role of Chinese visual culture, notably contemporary Chinese art as a medium of projecting China’s soft power.

Nixi Cura read East Asian Studies at Yale University then specialised in Chinese painting, Buddhist art and Romanesque architecture at the Institute of Fine Arts at New York University. Nixi was the Director of the Arts of China programs at Christie’s Education in London. She is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Glasgow and has held the role of Senior Fellow in the Cultural Leadership program at the Royal Academy of Arts. At SOAS University of London she served as Senior Teaching Fellow in Art History & Archaeology, and as a Doctoral Researcher embarked on a project focusing on the tomb of the Qianlong emperor. Nixi’s publications and research interests range from Qing painting and material culture to modern and contemporary Chinese visual culture.

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