The world stands on the cusp of a new era in nuclear relations—one in which Asia is likely to become the dominant influence on global nuclear arrangements. The old, bilateral nuclear symmetry of the Cold War is giving way to new multiplayer, asymmetric nuclear relationships. And it is doing so at a time when power...

This policy analysis assesses the strategic consequences of North Korea's second nuclear test, arguing that this test is more troubling than the first. It points to a North Korean arsenal that is permanent and growing rather than temporary and diminishing. Moreover, it undermines not only the existing agreements at the Six-Party Talks, but the broader...

This Policy Analysis, authored by Rod Lyon and Andrew Davies, reviews the recently released Defence White Paper Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030. Media reporting has tended to focus on the hardware acquisition aspects of this document. And that is not surprising -- there is a lot of it. It will take...

This Policy Analysis examines the current debate over how Australia should react to the growth of Chinese power. Media reports that highlight the different views of China held by Australia’s defence planners and its intelligence agencies miss a key point: we can’t know what sort of actor China will be in 2030. So Australia needs...

This paper assesses how much change we are seeing in US strategic policy under the new administration in Washington. President Obama has already begun a campaign to ‘renew’ American global leadership after the Bush years. He has been explicit in marking out his strategic style from Bush’s, emphasising that his presidency will be characterised by...