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Maritime boardings and international law:The Venezuela context
9 January 2025 | Jennifer Parker *Originally published in The Lowy Institute's The Interpreter on 9 January 2025 Image: US European Command Twitter Recent US boardings of oil tankers linked to Venezuela have prompted claims of piracy and illegality under international law. In reality, many of these boardings rest on a sound legal basis. Boarding vessels at sea is a routine naval activity permitted in limited circumstances under international law. This explainer outlines the i
What Venezuela tells us about Australia’s security
5 January 2026 | Jennifer Parker *Originally published in the Sydney Morning Herald on 5 January 2026 Image: Operation Absolute Resolve ( White House Twitter Account ). The image was confronting: Venezuela’s President, Nicolás Maduro , handcuffed aboard a United States warship, the USS Iwo Jima . It was a moment that made clear 2026 will be no calmer than the year before. From Australia, this may appear a distant drama in the Americas, tied to Washington’s long-running effort
Australia needs to grasp chance to reset defence expectations with the US
9 December | Jennifer Paker *Originally published in the Sydney Morning Herald on 9 December 2025 Image: AUSMIN 2025 (Secretary of State Marco Rubio X Post ) Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong are visiting Washington this week for the 35th Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations, known as AUSMIN. This year’s AUSMIN will be markedly different to those of previous years. It is the first under the current Trump administration and comes
Military Coercion is on the Rise and Australia is Vulnerable
Jennifer Parker | 30 November 2025 *Originally Published in the Australian Financial Review on 28 November 2025 We have forgotten what it feels like to face the visceral prospect of attack. Countries that cannot resist coercion will struggle to defend their interests. Image: A Royal Australian Air Force F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft conducts an aerial display as part of the RAAF Richmond Air Show 2025. Defence Images. Rumours suggest another Chinese naval task group may be he
Debating defence spending is prudence, not warmongering
19 November 2025 | Jennifer Parker *Originally Published in the Sydney Morning Herald on 17 November 2025 Image: Soldiers from Australia’s Special Operations Engineer Regiment, alongside partners from the US conduct deliberate pre-mission rehearsals in preparation for the next phase of Exercise Talisman Sabre 25, ensuring precision, cohesion, and mission readiness. Defence Images. It is not warmongering to discuss how a changing world may affect Australia’s way of life, just