Section: Australian Institute of International Affairs (Australia)
Reading Room: A Difficult Neighbourhood
Russia’s aggression against Georgia and Ukraine as well as its reluctance to resolve the frozen conflicts in the region demonstrate that Eastern Europe is again a contested geopolitical sphere between Russia and the European Union (EU). President Putin has now gone further, unleashing a range of active measures against Western democracies...
The 1917 Revolution Still Resonates in Modern Russia
One hundred years after the Russian revolution, the Bolsheviks’ historical legacy remains highly politicised. Some backers of Putin argue that, without his guiding hand, Russia would again witness the chaos of 1917. The year 1917 was a momentous one in Russian history. It started with a democratic uprising that overthrew the absolutist...
What Russia Wants
Russia wants to be recognised as a great power. But in the face of criticism over its actions in Ukraine, Syria and elsewhere, Moscow asserts that its legitimate strategic interests are being ignored and the nature of its foreign policy is deliberately misrepresented. Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Australia HE Mr Grigory Logvinov gave a...
Macron Marches On Towards Next French Poll
Emmanuel Macron achieved a strong victory over Marine Le Pen in the French presidential elections on the weekend. While he is not the novice some pundits make him out to be, he does face serious challenges in the months and years ahead. Less than a year after forming his centrist En Marche! party—and contradicting punditry that sees voters in the...
There are Red Lines and There are Red Lines: Trump’s Cheap Shot on Syria
The US cruise missile attack on Syria last week may have boosted President Trump’s weak standing at home and deflected pressure on him over questionable links between his campaign team and Russia. But it fails on more serious criteria of legality and morality. In justifying his decision last week to launch a strike against a Syrian...
Reading Room: Return to Moscow
Given Russia’s return to the world stage in the Caucasus, in Ukraine and in Syria, plus the allegations of involvement in Trump’s election victory, it is timely to have a new analysis of Putin’s Russia. Tony Kevin, a former Australian diplomat, has written an interesting book, part political defence of Putin and part travelogue,...
The Illusion of Military Victory in Syria
This week, Russia again used its veto to protect Syria from UN Security Council chemical weapons sanctions. While Russia’s involvement in Aleppo has emboldened Bashar al-Assad, Putin’s agreement with Turkey over a border buffer zone calls into question the viability of the Syrian regime. Last December the men, women and children of...
Dancing with the Bear: Trump and Russia
Trump’s campaign and presidency have been dogged by allegations of Russian collusion; the latest reports suggest that former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn may have received plans for lifting sanctions on Russia from Trump’s lawyer before the election. If genuine alignment is possible, what would Russo-American foreign policy...
Is Cyber Terrorism a Threat?
Recent cyberattacks and hacks in America and Ukraine have exposed the vulnerability of some of the world’s most sophisticated cyber-security networks. But what do we know about cyber-terrorism, and how real is the threat to Australia? The public imagination has been captured by the idea of terrorists potentially causing a massive loss of...
The Soviet Union’s Long Shadow
In the 25 years since the collapse of the USSR, the West’s relations with the largest nation on Earth have once again slowly grown sour. Looking back to the mistakes that spawned today’s Russia may hold the key to explaining and overcoming the most recent animosities. August 1991 was never going to be another lazy, summer month when...
