Newly elected Labor Party PM Anthony Albanese faces a dilemma on nuclear submarines. During the campaign, when he received only a single day’s notice, he felt compelled to endorse the AUKUS deal to buy nuclear-powered US or UK attack submarines, so he could avoid looking weak on China. However, Albanese knows that purchasing such submarines fueled with tons of highly enriched uranium (HEU) – enough for hundreds of nuclear weapons – would wreck the nonproliferation regime that his party helped build. Iran already has cited AUKUS as justification for its own production of HEU, and international inspectors cannot prevent diversion of this material for atom bombs. The webinar explores three ways that Albanese might extract Australia from this quandary.
Click here to watch the webinar on YouTube.
Information operations and foreign interferences are among the greatest threats facing nation states today as information warfare has intensified around the world. Yet, there are serious gaps in our knowledge and understanding of the working and impacts of information operations and foreign interferences in the Asia Pacific region. This roundtable brings together representatives from government, academia, think-tanks and industry to share their knowledge and perspectives on these issues and discuss implications for the Australian Defence Force.
What are the implications of the Russo-Ukraine war for Indo-Pacific security? As the conflict continues, countries in the Indo-Pacific are being pressured to take a ‘side’ even as many, coming out of post-colonial pasts, have approached foreign policy from a tradition of non-alignment. What lessons are Indo-Pacific countries likely to draw from the conflict? The conflict is likely to have implications for the Indo-Pacific in terms of the feasibility of military efforts to resolve disagreements, as well as the fallout from economic sanctions. It is also likely to reshape the alliance structures of the Indo-Pacific, and force countries to think about where they stand.
Ukraine is once again at the epicentre of news due to an unwarranted full-scale military aggression from Russia. After years of influence operations, active measures, and ceasefire violations, followed by failed diplomacy and ineffective sanctions, missiles are once again flying and more boots are on the ground. With hybrid war expanding into the realms of communication and perception, new analytical tools are needed to understand what happened and what is likely to come next. The CISS Global Forum gathers international experts for a critical analysis of the Russian-Ukrainian war and what it represents for the future of warfare.
Through a series of curated webcasts CISS explores the national, regional and global security implications of the new strategic partnership between the US, United Kingdom and Australia (AUKUS). Drawing on the popularised insight of Lord Palmerston - ‘There are no permanent friends or enemies, only interests’ - the Global Forum offers historical depth, political analysis and technological expertise to better address key questions:
In 2020, the Global Forum will explore the unprecedented challenges and changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Bringing together our research program leaders and international experts, the Global Forum will discuss the security implications of the the COVID crisis and explore how it impacts biosecurity, ecosecurity, gender, geopolitics, infosecurity and regional security.
In 2019, the Global Forum explored the theme of 'Future Insecurity' through a series of public lectures and seminars across the months of February and March. These events were linked by a special focus on how states and new global actors, seeking asymmetrical advantages through cyber, social media and other forms of digital manipulation, are producing a new precariousness in global politics. International experts included:
Professor Ron Deibert, digital detective and founder of the Citizen Lab, reveals the hidden censorship and surveillance systems underpinning digital espionage campaigns against human rights organisations, journalists, activists, and opposition groups around the world.
New York Times national security correspondent David E. Sanger outlines why cyber is the perfect weapon. Cheap to acquire, easy to deny, and usable for a variety of malicious purposes, cyber is now the weapon of choice for democracies, dictators, and terrorists.
The first CISS Global Forum was held on Thursday 27 April 2017 with an evening public forum at the University of Sydney. The event continued on Friday 28 April with a one-day workshop at the historic Quarantine Station in Sydney Harbour.
The Forum featured a diverse group of leading international security scholars, who addressed the topic from their own unique perspectives and research areas. The event was moderated by James Der Derian (Director, Centre for International Security Studies) and featured: