Penny Wong goes missing in action on Middle East

Though it is hard to contemplate in the wake of the brutal terrorist attacks by Hamas of October 7, and the maelstrom of human tragedy engulfing Israel and Gaza, it may prove that the current Israel-Hamas war forms the last chapter in the long-running Arab-Israeli conflict in the Middle East.

Australia risks becoming this century's Argentina

The Intergenerational Report should have been a call to arms. Instead the discussion the Labour Government is conducting is how to manage national decline. If we do not wake up, Australia risks becoming this century's Argentina.

Liberal Party to thrive again in fertile ground of young ambition

In October 2002, Britain’s Conservative Party gathered at Bournemouth, a traditional home for party gatherings, for a make-or-break conference for the new Conservative leader, Iain Duncan Smith. Accustomed to political ascendancy during the long period of Tory rule from 1979 to 1997, the Conservative Party was struggling to come to terms with its relegation to the opposition benches.

Labor's backwards step on the Middle East

With its new policy towards Israel, the Labor Government has allowed internal party politics to dictate foreign policy. Party first, country second.

Australia should return its ambassador to Ukraine

Australia's military support to Ukraine has been underwhelming. We have cleared out the back shed rather than gone to the top shelf. The least we can do is show diplomatic support by returning our ambassador to Kyiv.

US debt default threat bigger than a Quad meeting

Heading off the risk of a US debt default is more than reason enough for US President Joe Biden to skip a Quad meeting in Australia.

The fraying of Israel's social compact

The protests gripping Israel represent the nation’s social compact coming under strain. Netanyahu wants to be remembered as the leader who secured Israel and entrenched its place in the volatile Middle East. But the path he is being taken down by his coalition partners heads in the opposite direction. My thoughts on the political crisis gripping Israel, published in The Australian on 1 April.

Saudi-Iran deal adds new dimension to US-China rivalry

China's brokering of a diplomatic normalization agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia marks a diplomatic coup and is illustrative of a new power order taking shape in the Middle East. It brings China into the Middle East as a strategic player, positions the Saudis as the key regional state, and complicates strategy for Israel. US predominance in the Middle East is no longer assured.

Netanyahu returns as Israel's Prime Minister

On this podcast, I spoke to Hamish Macdonald of ABC about what sort of leader Binyamin Netanyahu is, what drives him, and what his return as Israel's Prime Minister means for Israel and its region.

Ukraine needs tanks - Australia should send them

"Despite early setbacks in its strategy, the war is now settling into a pattern familiar and favourable to Moscow. It is becoming a drawn-out conflict of attrition in which Russia can bring its superior resources to bear, including more soldiers and weaponry, and which drains Ukraine of its resources and weakens the resolve of its Western backers. With the stakes so high, and the war in the balance, further Western support to Ukraine is critical. "