ASPI Podcast: Policy, Guns & Money

This week, ASPI released the 21st edition of its annual ‘Cost of Defence’ budget brief, which is Australia’s most comprehensive analysis of Defence spending. Michael Shoebridge speaks to the report’s lead author Dr Marcus Hellyer about the biggest areas of spending for Defence and challenges for the Department, as well as the difficult choices the new government faces given supply chain disruptions, inflation and the conflict in Ukraine. Mentioned in this episode: The Cost of Defence – 2022-2023 Defence budget brief: https://www.aspi.org.au/report/cost-defence-aspi-defence-budget-brief-2022-2023 Guests: Michael Shoebridge: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/michael-shoebridge Dr Marcus Hellyer: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/marcus-hellyer Music: "Smoke Jacket Blues" by TrackTribe

Anastasia Kapetas and Kyle Wilson take a look at Russia’s history, use of propaganda and how Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was consistent with the evolution of his rule over the past two decades. Dr Jacob Wallis and Dr Samantha Hoffman discuss China’s messaging around the conflict in Ukraine. They consider the messaging by China’s diplomats and Chinese state media at different stages of the conflict, something they explored in their recent report ‘China's messaging on the Ukraine conflict’. Mentioned in this episode: ‘China's messaging on the Ukraine conflict’: https://www.aspi.org.au/report/chinas-messaging-ukraine-conflict Guests (in order of appearance): Anastasia Kapetas: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/anastasia-kapetas Kyle Wilson: https://ces.cass.anu.edu.au/people/mr-kyle-wilson Dr Jacob Wallis: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/jacob-wallis Dr Samantha Hoffman: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/samantha-hoffman Music: "Blue Mood" by Robert Munzinger

The floods in South-East Queensland and New South Wales earlier this year were some of the most extreme disasters in Australian history, with the Insurance Council of Australia highlighting the event as the country’s costliest flood ever. Dr Robert Glasser speaks to Dr Annika Dean about recent analysis by the Climate Council on the links between climate change and extreme weather events and insurability risks across Australia. Baseline data for the report Uninsurable Nation: Australia's Most Climate Vulnerable Places and the Climate Risk Map was provided by Climate Valuation. All reproduction, aggregations and conclusions drawn from the data are the work of the Climate Council. In September last year, the Australian Government announced it would enter into a trilateral security partnership with the United States and United Kingdom – AUKUS. As part of that partnership, Australia is set to acquire nuclear-powered submarines. Anastasia Kapetas is joined by John Carlson for a conversation on nuclear non-proliferation and whether the submarines can be safeguarded. - Look out for further work on counter-proliferation in the coming weeks as part of a developing collaboration with CSIS in Washington and the Centre for Grand Strategy at King's College London focused on the opportunities and challenges arising from AUKUS. Following a landslide victory, Mr Ferdinand Marcos Jr has been elected as the next President of the Philippines. Dr David Engel speaks to Dr Yusuke Takagi about the geostrategic implications of President Marcos election for the Quad countries, the bilateral relationship between the US and the Philippines, and what China’s growing regional influence means for Manila. Mentioned in this episode: ‘Uninsurable Nation: Australia’s Most Climate Vulnerable Places’: https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/uninsurable-nation-australias-most-climate-vulnerable-places/ Guests (in order of appearance): Dr Robert Glasser: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/robert-glasser Dr Annika Dean: https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/author/annika/ Anastasia Kapetas: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/anastasia-kapetas John Carlson: https://vcdnp.org/john-carlson/ Dr David Engel: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/david-engel Dr Yusuke Takagi: https://www.grips.ac.jp/list/en/facultyinfo/takagi_yusuke/ Music: Free Music Archive: Scott Holmes Music - Digital Age Image: https://nara.getarchive.net/media/chemical-reaction-team-personnel-wearing-nuclear-biological-chemical-nbc-protective-4e51b1

With the Quad Leaders set to meet in Tokyo next Tuesday, this episode explores the security and foreign policies of Australia’s Quad partners, India and Japan. Justin Bassi speaks to India expert Dr Tanvi Madan about India’s perspectives on key strategic issues, including the China-Russia partnership and regional security challenges in South Asia. The conversation highlights opportunities for the Quad to ensure stability and security in the region. Shifting focus to Japan, Dr Malcolm Davis speaks to Dr Stephen Nagy about Japan’s foreign and security policy. They discuss Japan’s relationship with China, the importance of multilateralism and the potential for increased technology cooperation. Mentioned in this episode: ‘Fateful Triangle - How China Shaped U.S.-India Relations During the Cold War’: https://www.brookings.edu/book/fateful-triangle/ Guests (in order of appearance): Justin Bassi: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/justin-bassi Dr Tanvi Madan: https://www.brookings.edu/experts/tanvi-madan/ Dr Malcolm Davis: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/malcolm-davis Dr Stephen Nagy: https://icu.academia.edu/StephenRobertNagy Background music: "Late Night Drive" by Nat Keefe & BeatMower

In this episode of ASPI’s Bigger Picture series, Dr Alex Bristow, Deputy Director of Defence, Strategy & National Security at ASPI, speaks to Dr Euan Graham, Shangri-La Dialogue Senior Fellow for Asia-Pacific Security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies about the security pact between China and Solomon Islands. Their conversation considers China’s strategic objectives, the different responses to the agreement and its implications for security in the South Pacific. Mentioned in this episode: Assessing the Solomon Islands’ new security agreement with China: https://www.iiss.org/blogs/analysis/2022/05/china-solomon-islands Guests (in order of appearance): Dr Alex Bristow: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/dr-alex-bristow Dr Euan Graham: https://www.iiss.org/people/asia-pacific/euan-graham Background music: "Hologram" by Bobby Richards

In April this year, a coalition of over 60 countries released ‘A Declaration for the Future of the Internet’, a joint partnership that aims to actively support the internet as an open, free, global digital ecosystem. Karly Winkler, Jocelinn Kang and Bart Hogeveen discuss what the declaration means for human rights, sustainable development and the democratic systems of countries. On 12th and 13th May, ASEAN Leaders will meet U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington DC for a special summit. Ahead of the summit, Dr David Engel speaks to Dr Huong Le Thu about the latest news from ASEAN, including Indonesia’s decision to keep Russia on the G20 invitation list and political stability in Southeast Asia. Recently, the Taliban announced a ban on the cultivation of opium poppy in Afghanistan. Dr Teagan Westendorf and Dr John Coyne discuss the political, cultural and economic ramifications of the new ban and how its impact will be felt locally and internationally. Guests (in order of appearance): Karly Winkler: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/karly-winkler Jocelinn Kang: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/jocelinn-kang Bart Hogeveen: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/bart-hogeveen Dr David Engel: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/david-engel Dr Huong Le Thu: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/huong-le-thu Dr Teagan Westendorf: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/teagan-westendorf Dr John Coyne: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/john-coyne Background music: "Metro" by Yung Logos

This is Policy, Guns and Money, the ASPI podcast, with me, Olivia Nelson. As Russia continues its attack on Ukraine, ASPI’s Dr David Engel and Radityo Dharmaputra, PhD researcher at the Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies at the University of Tartu, consider the public response to the conflict in Indonesia and how anti-Western sentiment and Russian propaganda have shaped people’s views. Now to a different aspect of the Russia-Ukraine conflict – the information domain. Anastasia Kapetas speaks to Carl Miller, Research Director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media (CASM) at Demos, about the effectiveness of Russia’s information operations outside of Western countries and who is winning the information war. Finally, Bart Hogeveen speaks to Trisha Ray, Associate Fellow with ORF’s Centre for Security, Strategy and Technology, about Australia and India’s engagement with Southeast Asia and opportunities to support inclusive digital development in the region. Guests (in order of appearance): Dr David Engel: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/david-engel Radityo Dharmaputra: https://icds.ee/en/autor/radityo-dharmaputra/ Anastasia Kapetas: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/anastasia-kapetas Carl Miller: https://demos.co.uk/people/carl-miller/ Bart Hogeveen: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/bart-hogeveen Trisha Ray: https://www.orfonline.org/people-expert/trisha-ray/

Recently, Peter Jennings spoke to Victorian Senator James Paterson, who Chairs the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. They discuss the Committee's recent inquiry into national security risks affecting Australia's higher education and research sectors, the Senator's role as Chair, and Australia's foreign interference laws. Dr John Coyne and Gill Savage from ASPI’s Northern Australia Strategic Policy Centre sat down to discuss what the latest Budget holds for Northern Australia. They discuss the disconnect between decisions made in southern Australia for initiatives in the north, the limitations of siloed policy approaches and the need for cohesive ‘bigger picture’ planning. Mentioned in this episode: ‘Collaborative nation building: Port of Townsville case study’ by Gill Savage and Dr John Coyne: https://www.aspi.org.au/report/collaborative-nation-building-port-townsville-case-study Guests (in order of appearance): Peter Jennings: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/peter-jennings Senator James Paterson: https://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Parliamentarian?MPID=144138 Dr John Coyne: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/john-coyne Gill Savage: https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/gill-savage Background music: "Salt Lake Swerve - Chillout Remix" by Maarten Schellekens - via freemusicarchive.org

In this episode of ASPI’s Bigger Picture series, Peter Jennings speaks to Dr David Kilcullen, Professor of International and Political Studies at UNSWCanberra. They discuss the global implications of the continued conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the state of Afghanistan since the withdrawal of international forces, and the future of Australia’s defence capability versus meeting its current short-term demands. Dr David Kilcullen is a former soldier and diplomat, and a scholar of guerrilla warfare, terrorism, urbanisation and the future of conflict, who served 25 years for the Australian and United States governments. Guests (in order of appearance): Peter Jennings: www.aspi.org.au/bio/peter-jennings Dr David Kilcullen: https://www.unsw.adfa.edu.au/david-kilcullen Background music: "Late Night Drive" by Nat Keefe & BeatMower

In this episode of ASPI’s Bigger Picture series, Fergus Hanson speaks to India’s National Cyber Security Coordinator, Lt Gen (Dr) Rajesh Pant. They discuss the evolution of Australia-India cyber partnership, the cybersecurity threat landscape in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and India’s national security policies on 5G. Lt Gen (Dr) Rajesh Pant is India’s National Cybersecurity Coordinator. He is responsible for overseeing the development of India’s first national cybersecurity strategy. Previously, he was the head of the Indian Army’s cyber training establishment for three years and served in the Indian Army Signals Corps for 41 years. Guests (in order of appearance): Fergus Hanson https://www.aspi.org.au/bio/fergus-hanson Lt Gen (Dr) Rajesh Pant Background music: "Average" by Patrick Patrikios