Maritime Matters

Maritime Matters Episode Title: LHD mechanical issues, Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, and UK Aukus investment

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss recent maritime events in the Indo-Pacific, including:

- Chinese aggressive activities in the South China Sea

- Royal New Zealand Navy transit of the Taiwan Strait

- Propulsion problems for Australian LHDs

- Chinese UUV “mothership”

- UK Aukus investments

Maritime Matters Episode Title: LHD mechanical issues, Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, and UK Aukus investment

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss recent maritime events in the Indo-Pacific, including:

- Chinese aggressive activities in the South China Sea

- Royal New Zealand Navy transit of the Taiwan Strait

- Propulsion problems for Australian LHDs

- Chinese UUV “mothership”

- UK Aukus investments

Maritime Matters | RIMPAC 2026, Indonesia’s One-Way Attack USV & US Foreign-Built Warships

In this episode of Maritime Matters, we look at some of the key maritime security and capability developments shaping the Indo-Pacific.

We discuss:

RIMPAC 2026 and the testing of AUKUS Pillar II undersea capabilities, including autonomous and remotely operated systems

Operation Island Chief and Australia’s support to Pacific-led fisheries surveillance in Solomon Islands

The recent Indonesia-China passing exercise east of Taiwan and the political reaction it generated

The engineering casualty that left USS Benfold without power in the South China Sea

The latest on Collins-class submarine sustainment and the move towards a revised maintenance model

Indonesia’s demonstration of a one-way attack unmanned surface vessel and the wider debate over sea denial, geography and navigational rights

The US decision to explore allied foreign-built warship designs as it tries to address shipbuilding delays and industrial capacity constraints

We also look at what these developments tell us about the changing character of maritime competition, the growing role of uncrewed systems, and the pressure on naval industrial capacity across the region.

Recorded 20 August 2026.

Maritime Matters Episode Title: Chinese Ballistic Missile Tests, Antelope Reef & Royal Navy Uncrewed Systems

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss recent maritime events in the Indo-Pacific, including:

Australia-India Defence Agreement

Chinese Missile Tests

Island Building at Antelope Reef

Royal Navy Uncrewed Systems

Australian IAMD tests

Public Attitudes Towards the Australian Defence Force: 2026 Survey - https://www.unsw.edu.au/content/dam/pdfs/unsw-canberra/hass/2026-07-5253529-PublicAttitudeTowardsTheADFSurveyReport-Final.pdf

Maritime Matters Episode Title: Regional Presence Deployments, RIMPAC and North Korean Destroyers

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss recent maritime events in the Indo-Pacific, including:

Regional Presence Deployments

RIMPAC

PLA Navy Deployments

North Korea Commissions its Destroyer

India to get German Submarines

Maritime Matters Episode Title: Exercise Balikatan and the Collins Life-of-Type Extension

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss recent martitime events in the Indo-Pacific, including:

Exercise Balikatan

HMAS Toowoomba’s Regional Presence Deployment

US Marine Corps Rotational Deployment

Collins Life-of-Type Extension

Royal Australian Navy UAVs

An Indonesian aircraft carrier

Maritime Matters Episode Title: National Defence Strategy, Indo-Pacific Tensions & Australia’s Future Fleet

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard…) discuss key developments shaping maritime security, including:

Australia’s 2026 National Defence Strategy and Integrated Investment Program

New Zealand P-8 operations and China’s response

Discovery of a Chinese undersea monitoring system in Indonesia

Developments in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz

Australia’s upgraded Mogami-class frigates and defence cooperation with Japan

The Royal Australian Navy’s new Maritime Autonomous Systems Unit and uncrewed capabilities

Mine warfare has returned to the centre of global security.

In this special episode of Maritime Matters, recorded on 14 April, we unpack the strategic and operational implications of naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz — a crisis that has already disrupted one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints.

Recent reporting has highlighted the scale of the challenge: once mines are laid in contested waters, they are difficult, slow and dangerous to clear. The result is not just a military problem, but a direct threat to global energy flows, maritime trade and Australia’s own economic security.

This webinar was sponsored by Exail.

In this discussion, Jennifer Parker and Antony Penn examine:

• The reality of mine warfare in modern conflict

• Why traditional mine clearance methods struggle in high-risk environments

• The role of autonomous and uncrewed systems in modern mine countermeasures

• What this means for Australia, where 99% of trade moves by sea

This discussion connects directly to current events and highlights a persistent vulnerability in Australia’s maritime security.

Speakers:

Jennifer Parker – former Royal Australian Navy warfare officer and maritime strategist

Antony Penn – Commercial Director (MCM), Exail

Deanna Nott - Wings Public Relations

Maritime Matters Episode Title: Ukraine and Venezuelan Shadow Fleets & Hanwha-Austal

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss the week that was in Maritime Matters, including:

Ukrainian attacks on the Russian Shadow Fleet

Ukrainian USV strike on a Russian submarine

US seizure of tankers off Venezuela

Hanwha’s acquisition of a stake in Austal

US frigate programme

RAN changes to the Upgraded Mogami

Maritime Matters Episode Title: AUKUS, AUSMIN and Chinese Naval Task Groups

In this episode of Maritime Matters Jennifer Parker (https://www.jennifer-parker.com.au/) and Richard Dunley (https://www.unsw.edu.au/staff/richard...) discuss the week that was in Maritime Matters, including:

AUKUS & AUSMIN

China's Naval Flotilla in the Pacific

China's Fighter Aircraft locks its RADAR onto a Japanese aircraft

US Constellation Class Frigate Program Cancellation

The UK's Atlantic Bastion