Defence & Security Podcast Network

The Australian Invictus Games team, along with their family members and friends, have departed from Sydney International Airport on 12 April 2022 to travel to The Hague, Netherlands on board a Royal Australian Air Force KC-30. Before the team flew out, Defence Connect journalist Nastasha Tupas caught up with Invictus Australia 2022 team members Emily Mysko, Joel Vanderzwan and Pete Miller to chat about how the Invictus Games uses the power of sport to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and generate a wider understanding and respect for wounded, injured and ill servicemen and women. The Invictus Games is an international adaptive sporting event for serving and former serving Defence personnel. The Australian Defence Force and Invictus Australia are supporting the participation of 32 serving and former serving competitors, as well as over 120 supporting family members and friends. Up to 500 competitors from 20 nations will compete in the Games' individual and team sports, including archery, athletics, indoor rowing, the Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge, powerlifting, road cycling, sitting volleyball, swimming, wheelchair basketball and wheelchair rugby.

The 2020 Games is set to commence this week and will run from 16-22 April 2022.

Enjoy the podcast! The Defence Connect Team

Independent Senator for South Australia Rex Patrick joins host Liam Garman in the studio to assess the government and opposition's defence policies ahead of the upcoming federal election. The pair begins by discussing recent developments in the submarine program, where the Senator draws upon his expertise as a submariner to give strategic advice on building a domestic submarine capability. The podcast continues with an analysis into the government's recent announcement regarding the expansion of the ADF, and whether this was already embedded in defence's forward staffing estimates. The pair wraps up the podcast by discussing Australia's defence industry, and how government can do a better job integrating local SMEs into the defence supply chain. Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect Team

In this episode of the Cyber Security Uncut podcast, hosts Phil Tarrant and Major General (Ret'd) Marcus Thompson, inaugural head of information warfare for the ADF, discuss the rapidly evolving domestic and global cyber security landscape.

The pair begins by flagging risks associated with the rise in polarisation, alarmism and sensationalism in the cyber space.

Tarrant and MAJGEN Thompson then discuss the importance of democratisation of information and openness in the industry, drawing on the Australian Signals Directorate's recent engagement strategy.

The hosts go on to reflect on the Russia-Ukraine crisis – the potential outcome of the ongoing conflict, and Australia's contribution to Ukraine's resistance.

The pair concludes by discussing opportunities to address skills and workforce shortages in the cyber space, drawing on MAJGEN Thompson's appearance on a panel discussion hosted by ParaFlare and Deloitte. Enjoy the podcast, The Cyber Security Uncut team

Following the federal budget announcement that the Australian government has committed $9 million over the next three years to supporting Invictus Australia's work with the Invictus Team and the entire veteran community, Michael Hartung OAM, CEO of Invictus Australia, joins Defence Connect journalist Nastasha Tupas to discuss the important role Invictus Australia plays in supporting the defence and veteran community. Hartung, who received the Order of Australia Medal (OAM) for service to sport for people with a disability, discusses how Veteran Sport Australia became an extension of the international Invictus Foundation, after signing a world-first agreement to continue to use the Invictus brand in Australia; with the aim of extending support and the power of the Invictus movement beyond the 2018 games held in Sydney. He speaks on the impact of coronavirus, which delayed the games for over two years; postponing it from 2020 to 2021, and then again to 2022. Hartung remains confident that the resilience of the 2020 Invictus Australia team will see them through at the fifth Games that will be hosted in the Hague, the Netherlands, which is kicking off on 16 April and wraps up on 22 April this year.

Finally, Hartung touches on how Invictus Australia continues to uplift the defence and veteran community through the grassroots work Invictus Australia has been doing. Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect Team

In this special Cyber Resilience Week edition of the Cyber Security Uncut podcast, host Liam Garman is joined by Linda Cavanagh, chief operating officer at Cybermerc to discuss how Australian companies have risen to the challenge to build a robust and innovative cyber security industry. The pair begins by discussing the profile of the modern cyber criminal, and the emerging tools and vectors they use to conduct cyber crime. The podcast then continues by discussing Cybermerc's AUSHIELD offering, how their Protect, Defence and Detect solutions are game changers for protecting businesses. The pair wraps up the podcast by looking at the future of cyber security, including what threats lurk on the horizon and how Cybermerc aims to overcome them. Enjoy the podcast, The Cyber Security Uncut team

How do big Australian primes work with smaller businesses in the supply chain? In this special crossover podcast between Defence Connect and Australian Aviation, host Adam Thorn interviews Chris Hess, head of industrial development at Lockheed Martin Australia, and Gavin New, the general manager of Ronson Gears. The pair have been working together on a range of projects across defence and aerospace, and reveal the secrets behind making the relationship work, as well as dispelling some myths behind supply chain collaboration. Finally, Hess discusses the importance of Australia boosting its sovereign industry capability as industries emerge from the pandemic. Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect Team

In this special cross over podcast, MAJ GEN (Ret'd) Marcus Thompson joins Clare Pales, director of The Secure Board, as a guest on the Secure Board podcast.

The pair begin by analysing how recent legislative changes will impact Australia's cyber security environment, and the flow on effects that policy changes will have on local business.

Thompson and Pales continue the podcast discussing the importance of having cyber security expertise at senior management levels in companies to ensure that businesses have a cyber security culture.

The pair wrap up the podcast by discussing strategies on how businesses can maintain cyber safe practices.

Enjoy the podcast, The Cyber Security Uncut team

In this episode of the Defence Connect Podcast — recorded the week of the Russian invasion of Ukraine — University of Canberra professor and co-convener of the National Security Hub, Dr Sascha-Dominik Dov Bachmann, joins editor of Defence Connect, Liam Garman, to unpack the hybrid and grey-zone warfare strategies employed by Russia ahead of its invasion of Ukraine.

Dr Dov Bachmann begins by delving into the 20th century origins of Russia-Ukraine tensions to contextualise the contemporary struggle.

The UOC professor then speaks to Russia's modern warfare strategy, discussing its use of both hybrid and grey-zone tactics.

Dr Dov Bachmann goes on to explain how Moscow has leveraged these methods to advance its geostrategic objectives, referencing key operations in breakaway provinces across Ukraine.

Finally, the professor flags the risks of a potential spill-over in conflict in the Indo-Pacific off the back of tensions in eastern Europe.

Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect Team

In this episode of the Cyber Security Uncut podcast, hosts Phil Tarrant and MAJGEN (Ret'd) Marcus Thompson, inaugural head of information warfare for the ADF, discuss Russia's history of cyber war and how this vector will continue to shape peace and conflict in the future.

The pair begin by discussing MAJGEN (Ret'd) Thompson's recent opinion piece in The Australian Financial Review, which dives into Russia's history of cyber and information warfare.

In his piece, he argues that Australia must better prepare itself for cyber attacks which will be weaponised in reprisal against Australia for supporting Ukraine during the recent conflict.

Both hosts continue by discussing the impact of cyber warfare on Australian businesses, and how many malicious actors work in concert with state-sponsored groups to exploit the cyber domain.

The pair wraps up the podcast by analysing how cyber remains an integral part in both hybrid and greyzone warfare, and that foreign actors will continue to use cyber as an essential attack vector in future conflicts.

Enjoy the podcast, The Cyber Security Uncut team

In this special cross-over edition of the Defence Connect Podcast and Australian Aviation Podcast, Air Vice-Marshal (Ret'd) John Quaife, AM joins host Phil Tarrant to discuss his new book Viking Boys.

A former Air Commander Australia, Quaife spent nearly three decades in the Royal Australian Air Force as a fighter pilot. After retiring from the service, he became a member of the Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal where he learnt incredible stories of untold bravery from Australian service personnel.

Viking Boys tells the story of Beaufighter pilot James Hakewill and his navigator Fred Sides, who died on 5 December 1944 when their aircraft slammed into a German gunboat in a fjord in Norway.

While official records contain no mention of the aircraft hitting the ship, Quaife reveals what truly happened on 5 December 1944.

Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect Team