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The Indian Ocean is no longer secondary
22 May 2026 | Jennifer Parker & Dr Troy-Lee Brown *Originally published on 22 May by the Perth US Asia Centre The Iran war is again exposing a reality Australia has long overlooked: the Indian Ocean sits at the centre of the nation’s economic and strategic security. Image: United States forces prepare to board an oil tanker in the Indian Ocean in early February 2026 after the vessel violated a U.S. embargo of sanctioned ships in the Caribbean. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF WAR Key takea
Even the world’s most powerful navy cannot simply restore safe passage in the Strait of Hormuz
9 May 2026 | Jennifer Parker *Originally published with Channel News Asia on 9 May 2026. Access original publication here The abrupt “pause” of Project Freedom after two days undermines confidence in the United States’ ability to secure the critical waterway, says defence professor and navy veteran Jennifer Parker. Image: Guided-missile destroyer USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) enforces the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports against M/T Stream after it attempted to sail to an Irania
Maritime gaps remain in Australia’s defence
22 April 2026 | Jennifer Parker *Originally published in Lowy's The Interpreter on 22 April 2026 Image: HMAS Canberra and HMAS Warramunga while on deployment on the East Coast of Australia (Defence images) In 2023, the Australian government adopted a “strategy of denial” to guide defence planning, defined as an “defensive approach designed to stop an adversary from succeeding in its goal to coerce states through force, or the threatened use of force, to achieve dominance.” Th
A Sound Strategy, Still Underfunded
20 April 2026 | Jennifer Parker *Originally published in the Australian Financial Review on 16 April 2026 Does Australia have the capability to defend itself and protect its maritime lifelines? Under the current funding profile, the answer is no, we would be relying on the United States to do it for us. The second iteration of the National Defence Strategy arrives against the backdrop of conflict in the Middle East already affecting Australia’s fuel, fertiliser, plastics sup
A new Army chief for a more dangerous world
15 April 2026 | Jennifer Parker *Originally published in the Sydney Morning Herald Image: Australian Army officer Colonel Susan Coyle, CSC, Commander Task Group Afghanistan, at the graduation ceremony for 3rd Kandak. With wars in Europe and the Middle East, and Chinese naval task groups operating closer to Australia, the familiar line that this is our most challenging strategic environment since World War II is starting to feel dated. We are certainly in a more dangerous peri