Coastwatchers 2.0 / Commentary

China embeds its military ambitions within Pacific Island nations by developing dual-use infrastructure such as ports, wharves, fisheries, aviation hubs, and ICT networks.

The Cook Islands has found itself in the global spotlight recently, and not for reasons that inspire confidence, writes Professor Anne-Marie Brady.

We need a commission of inquiry into police conduct on foreign interference, writes Professor Anne Marie Brady.

The rules-based international order that once underpinned global stability is being vaporised by the ruthless actions of the US, Russia, and China.

The live-fire exercises were a demonstration of China’s growing sea power in Australia and New Zealand’s immediate periphery – and meant to normalize the PLA presence there.

The new China-Cook Islands deal has implications for Pacific security, but particularly for New Zealand, the United States, and Australia.

Developing political literacy on China requires understanding not only Beijing’s policies and ambitions, but also how its growing influence is reshaping political decision-making and public debate in democratic societies.

New Caledonia is the most pressing issue in Pacific security right now. New Caledonia’s future is a black swan risk: waiting in plain sight, yet unknown to most.

China’s covert foreign interference activities in the Pacific are a very important, and yet under-researched, topic. This report uses New Caledonia as the case study to examine China’s hidden front, 隐蔽战线, throughout the wider Pacific.

China relations expert Professor Anne-Marie Brady examines the subtle but important shifts in NZ’s official attitude towards Xi Jinping’s China.