In the current strategic environment, states are looking beyond the strategies of the past to ensuring their national security. A little-heralded Australian defence program in the Indo-Pacific may hold the edge in supporting Australian interests through the hand of friendship.

The Chinese Communist Party has enacted a five-year plan for the construction of a rule of law. It has been instrumental in maintaining its political supremacy and has had significant implications for Hong Kong.

With the threat of right-wing extremism accelerating due to the pandemic, understanding the gendered element of the threat is essential countering radicalisation. Misogynist rhetoric is not only pushing men to the far right, but women too.

Climate change has allowed for new energy resources and trade routes to be exploited in the Arctic. This has resulted in growing great power competition between the US, Russia, and China in the region.

Australia’s approach to Pacific migration needs to refocus as climate change worsens. Going forward, Australia should prioritise migrant dignity and mobility.

With China banning all trading and mining of cryptocurrency, crypto miners will be seeking to move operations to other locations. States will have to reckon with both the benefits and risks this opportunity presents. 

In the Asia Pacific, free trade has facilitated economic rise. However, trade barriers, geopolitical rivalries, the COVID-19 pandemic, and regional inequality has hampered free trade. 

The challenge presented by the COVID-19 pandemic has thrust Cuba and its medical internationalism into the spotlight. Australia should take note if it wants to make significant inroads with its South Pacific neighbours and enhance its presence in the region.

A prominent frontier in the Sino-US competition and the Quad’s agenda is tech and cyberspace governance. To tackle emerging security challenges, India would benefit from a modified multistakeholder approach to internet governance.

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-Cha faces ongoing public protests, poor approval ratings, and a third wave of COVID-19 that has battered the country since April. If the government is unable to ease restrictions and open for travel in October, Prayut may not have the option to remain in office.