The knock-out punch was never delivered in the international campaign against Islamic State. Now it is emerging from the Syrian desert to fight on.

The forces of political populism in the United States are too entrenched to be expunged by the defeat of Donald Trump on 3 November 2020. The issue is systemic, not a consequence of leadership idiosyncrasies.

This week in Australian foreign affairs: Payne’s press conference on Doha airport, new diplomatic appointments, COVID-19 Development Response Plans for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, and more.

The current state of global affairs in light of the pandemic has raised questions on how international relations may change in the post-COVID 19 world. It is essential to speculate how Australia's role and relations with its friends may evolve in these times.

Step ups and step downs are part of the well-established Libyan playbook of influencing context, environment, players, and observers. Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj's moves toward resignation may be more about consolidating power than relinquishing it.

Also discussed in this episode of the Australia in the World podcast: Senator Abetz and loyalty tests, and diplomacy and quarantine.

There is always some agency even in the most seemingly dire of circumstances. Whether we have the wit to recognise it and the agility and courage to use it are entirely different matters.

Kathmandu's sovereignty concerns are genuine and deserve better treatment from India. In reality, like Kathmandu does not want to compromise its sovereignty for India's national security, New Delhi would be unwilling to compromise its national security for Nepal's strategic autonomy.

Little analytical heed has been paid to the particular effects of Indonesia’s democratic transition on its relations with Australia. Indonesia’s democratisation experience did not ameliorate old constructs and resentments, but on occasions served to exacerbate them.

The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh was frozen for over two decades. The involvement of Turkey has upended the balance maintained by Russia throughout this period, and the ensuing great-power entanglements have complicated efforts at a definitive resolution.