John Bruni, CEO of SAGE International Australia, recently went on a trip and found himself in Dubai, wherein an interesting conversation was had with David Khandan. Tim, John and David interview David Khandan, Executive Director of Austability to recreate the magic of that conversation. In this episode, we look at the Australian Government and diagnose some problems with the short elected terms and prescribe some new approaches to a range of issues for long term strategy.

This week's music comes courtesy of Leaf and Stem, check them out on Facebook, Spotify and iTunes.

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Iran has been placed in a very difficult bind by the US and other countries with extreme economic interest in Iranian Oil. The US has put blame for the recent attack on oil tankers off the Gulf of Oman on Iran, further sparking tensions in the area. Iran's fringe political groups are pushing back against the US administration in a big way since the dispute and the reality of an Iranian attack against the US is becoming serious. There are desires to remove the Iranian regime throughout the region and from many countries in the west. But what is the best approach to keep the peace after years, centuries, of subjegation of the iranians.

To talk to us about this, in a general discussion, is Commodore Pat Tyrrell OBE RN (Retd), Pat is Chair of the SIA Advisory Board, Senior Non Resident Fellow Global & Maritime Security.CDRE Tyrrell is Director of Vale Atlantic Associates which specializes in the provision of high-level, strategic consultancy in several fields including cyber warfare, security, intelligence analysis as well as current research in technologies applicable to defence and the intelligence world. He holds the Order of the British Empire, a Master of Arts degree in Chemistry and a Bachelor of Laws.

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In this episode of STRATEGIKON, David and Tim take listeners along to talk to some speakers from a recent event put on by Professor Purnendra Jain of The University of Adelaide and member of SIA Advisory Board. To discuss the Japanese Economy, Australia-Japan Relations, and Japan’s Politics and Foreign Policy, David interviews three academics from The Australian National University:

Dr Ben Ascione is a research scholar at the Crawford School of Public Policy, ANU. He is Japan and Korea editor at East Asia Forum and a research associate at the Japan Center for International Exchange in Tokyo.

Dr Lauren Richardson is the Director of Studies and a Lecturer at the Asia-Pacific College of Diplomacy. Previously she taught Northeast Asian Relations at the University of Edinburgh and Keio University. Her research focuses on the role of non-state actors in shaping diplomatic interactions in Northeast Asia. Dr Richardson holds Master’s degrees in Asian Studies (Monash University) and Political Science (Keio University), and a PhD in International Relations from ANU. She has been a visiting fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs and Keio University, a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Australia-Asia Award (2011), and a participant in the US-Korea NextGen Scholars Program (2015-16).

Professor Peter Drysdale AO is Emeritus Professor of Economics and Head of the East Asian Bureau of Economic Research and East Asia Forum at the Crawford School of Public Policy. His research interests include Asia Pacific economic integration, international trade and foreign direct investment, Japanese economic policy, and the East Asian economic transformation. Previously, Peter was Professor of Economics and founding Executive Director of the Australia-Japan Research Centre at the Crawford School. He is widely recognised as one of the leading architects of APEC, and is the author of several books on economic policy in the Asia Pacific, including the prize-winning International Economic Pluralism: Economic Policy in East Asia and the Pacific. Peter received his PhD in Economics from ANU.

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A lot has been said of the state of American global power. But in the US itself there is little appetite among the people to be on a constant state of military vigilance and arguably the Trump win in 2016 played to a sense of national public war weariness. 
This is a time of confrontation with Iran in the Gulf, Kim Jong Un in North Korea, and most worrying of all, a rising China. Chinese power is increasingly seen to be pushing US power from the Western Pacific. 

To plumb the depths of American power in the Pacific today, we are honoured to be joined by Lt. General Jerry Martinez, US Air Force (Ret.). Also in the Studio are John Bruni and David Olney.

This weeks music comes courtesy of Flat Moon Society, check them out on Facebook, Spotify and iTunes.

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The European Parliament’s creation, national ambitions, identities and
interests have had an imperfect execution throughout its history. The last elections demonstrated that nationalism is making a come-back in a significant way. British 'nationalists' won the Brexit debate hugely, Northern Italian ‘nationalists’ won in Italy signalling a divided Italy may be in its future. Though there were some notable defeats for nationalist parties, overall they are a growing, permanent presence in the European political space.
Upon scanning recent geopolitical articles on social media, Dr. John Bruni came across a piece written by a colleague and part-time contributor to SAGE International Australia, Prof. Dr. Julian Lindley-French. 

To discuss these issues, we’ll be joined today by Prof. Lindley-French. Julian is Vice-President Atlantic Treaty Association, Senior Fellow of the Institute of Statecraft, Director of Europa Analytica & Distinguished Visiting Research Fellow, National Defense University, Washington DC.

Please direct any feedback you may have to the SIA website, we look forward to hearing from you!

This episode's feature artist is Hartway, with their track Dreaming. Find them on Facebook, iTunes and Spotify.

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Abiy Ahmed  election as Ethiopia’s Prime Minister in April 2018 was welcomed as good news around the world. Ethiopia is critical to the Horn of Africa, and since the end of its sixteen year long civil war, the victory of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front, rapidly stabilised the state.

Abiy Ahmed promised to enact reforms that would fully modernise and liberalise Ethiopia but his attempts have come unstuck. Critics claim that Abiy’s reform process is too fast, and that it is threatening to leave large parts of the population behind. On June 23 of 2018, Abiy was the target of an assassination attempt killing 2
people and injuring around 165 in Meskel Square, fortunately Abiy was unharmed.
Then a coup attempt staged by Brig. Gen. Asaminew Tsige with the destabilising assassination of three senior officials of Amhara state. Can Abiy survive his
reform process?

Today we are joined by Sandy Wade OBE JP. Sandy is Associate Director Horn of Africa at Africa Advisory Partners Limited and Horn of Africa Regional Strategic Advisor with Austability and Associate Director with Strategia Worldwide. He’s had and continues to have extensive experience in Ethiopia and Horn of Africa affairs.

Please subscribe to STRATEGIKON through your favourite podcatcher and like us on the SAGE International Australia Facebook site and follow us on Twitter. We appreciate your support! Also, please comment on any of our articles and podcasts through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and of course on the SAGE International Australia site, we welcome any constructive feedback that can help improve our products and we look forward to engaging with our followers.

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The 2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill has incited protests and political unrest in Hong Kong and Taiwan, evoking emotions across the globe. The protests are demanding a withdrawal of the Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation Bill 2019 proposed by the Government of Hong Kong.
Though Hong Kong has extradition deals with other countries, it does not extradite citizens to mainland China, into the jurisdiction of the Chinese Communist Party.
The "One Country, Two Systems" agreement between HK and the Mainland is threatened by these laws, but this is not the first time there have been proposals to blur the lines between the two states.
To discuss the significance of these protests, we are joined by Professor Delia Lin, a Senior, Lecturer in Chinese Studies at the Asia Institute, University of Melbourne. Delia is a multi-disciplinary educator, her expertise range from engineering, to a  PhD in Humanities from Griffith University, Australia. Her research in linguistics, sociology, and political science has all been rooted in chinese culture, giving her excellent scope for this discussion.

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What does the future of war look like? Do we expect armies of robots, lazer guns, and multi terrain transforming jet fighters?
What about the strategic elements of future war, how will major powers react to the technical advances in weaponry and surveillance?
This is a fun thought experiment, but there is a deeper consideration, in delving into the current trajectory of defence for many world players a question arises, what happens when we run out of the complex systems, resources, and weapons we are investing in?
Dr. John Bruni and David Olney discuss this in depth, and give warning to industry and political leaders to consider the practical implications of their technological defence endeavours.

This episode's musical break is courtesy of Leaf and Stem, with their song "Always Yours"
Check them out on Spotify!

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We’ll start off with a quote from our friends at Wikipedia:
"Truthiness is the belief or assertion that a particular statement is true based on
the intuition or perceptions of some individual or individuals, without regard
to evidence, logic, intellectual examination, or facts."
Today we are joined by Dr Sharon Mascall-Dare, Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of South Australia and by multi-award-winning journalist Peter Warren, to answer some big questions:
Do our audiences fact check, or is there not enough time? Can the reporters cut through the guff? In today’s age where reporting the news is now in the hands of fewer and fewer media mega corporations, how do we get to the truth of the matter?

This episode's musical interlude: Mum Thinks Blue with Gotten Away
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The Indian 2019 national election is upon us. Prime Minister Nanendra Modi has guided India as Prime Minister since his first electoral victory back in 2014.

To discuss how Modi and the BJP are affecting the Indian polity, society and strategy, we speak to Prof. Purnendra Jain, member of the SIA Advisory Board, and Dr. Stuti Bhatnagar, formerly with the University of Adelaide and regular
contributor to the Lowy Institute on Indian affairs.

Please comment on any of our articles and podcasts through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and of course on the SAGE International Australia site. We welcome any constructive feedback that can help improve our products and we look forward to engaging with our followers.

This week's Local Music thanks to SODA with "Silent Minds"
Check them out at Spotify & Facebook.
They're playing at The Lion Arts Factory on the 30th of May.

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