This was never going to be an easy meeting between the leaders of one of the oldest democracies and the world’s largest dictatorship. The two countries have an increasingly conflicted relationship: on the one hand, …
Sea State Competition between the three contenders for the replacement of the Royal Navy’s Collins-class submarines has started to heat up with Japan now revealing its willingness to build the submarines in Australia despite previous …
It’s often said that in terms of range, what Australia is looking for in replacing the Collins-class is a nuclear submarine, but with conventional propulsion. If this assessment were taken too literally it would favor …
When I was surveying the communications capability of the ADF back in 2010, I made the following observation: ‘Australian users now have access to the US-built Wideband Global Satellite (WGS) system. This ‘off-the-shelf’ purchase provides …
It has been less than two years since The Strategist provided a new Defence Minister with an incoming brief, but it’s already time to update that for the new incumbent. And that reflects an unhealthy …
In my earlier article, I argued that Australia’s most important sea-trade during a time of crisis in Asia is likely to be high-value, low-volume importation of machinery and industrial equipment from Europe and North America. …
The fascinating debate on the worth of Australia building the Future Frigates as part of SEA 5000 between Hugh White and James Goldrick (see here, here , here and here ) highlights the issue of …
It’s an irony of history that we no longer comprehend much of the way in which ships were worked and fought in 1914-1918. Indeed, the interest in the Nelsonic era and the combination of extensive …
Taiwanese defence planners face a simple—though unenviable—task when crafting the country’s defence policy and military strategy. Taiwan’s only potential enemy is the People’s Republic of China, which is rapidly modernising the PLA. In the face …
Hugh White has yet again kicked the hornet’s nest by questioning the government’s naval ship-building program. In doing so, he’s aroused a swarm of strident defenders of Sea Control, which is the ability to keep …
Sea State Last week five Chinese Navy ships came within 12 nautical miles of the US mainland, sailing inside American territorial waters as they passed through the Bering Sea, coinciding with President Obama’s trip to …
Germany’s bid for the SEA 1000 Future Submarine project could reasonably be described as coming from a safe pair of hands. Since 1960, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) through its Howaldwerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) subsidiary has delivered …