Lowy Institute

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Panel Discussion: Jiyoung Song and Euan Graham on North Korea May 30, 2017

Show notes

North Korea is moving closer to its cherished strategic goal: the possession of a functioning nuclear missile capable of hitting the United States. The regime’s nuclear and ballistic missile tests have gathered pace, creating a momentum which US and regional policy makers are struggling to control. Sanctions have failed to halt the development of the North’s nuclear program. The recent, brazen assassination of Kim Jong Un’s half-brother by an outlawed chemical weapon in Malaysia’s main airport is also widely believed to have been carried out at Pyongyang’s direction, although no North Korean suspects have been brought to justice.
While South Korea has lived with North Korea’s provocative behaviour for decades, how will other neighbours and the Trump administration deal with the looming threat? Is there a US-China “grand bargain” on the cards? Will the United States pursue unilateral counter-measures? Or does the solution lie elsewhere – with the possibility that a new South Korean president will pursue a pro-engagement strategy?
Dr Euan Graham, Director of the International Security Program at the Lowy Institute and Korean foreign policy expert, Dr Jiyoung Song discussed the future of North Korea and how it will shape regional security.

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Quick comment: Sebastian Mallaby on Trump, the Fed and the global economy May 26, 2017

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Lowy Institute Nonresident Fellow Stephen Grenville speaks with Sebastian Mallaby, a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, about how US President Donald Trump might interact with the US Federal Reserve, what lessons the Reserve Bank of Australia might draw from the US, and the impact of former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan.

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Panel discussion: China's population challenges (AMP China Series) May 22, 2017

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China is a rapidly ageing country. According to the World Bank, the working age population is predicted to fall by 10% by 2040. While the size of the workforce is falling, the pool of over 65s are rising, predicted to reach 350 million by the same year.
What are the economic effects of a shrinking labour pool and rising number of aged dependents, and how will the two-child policy limit these effects? On 22 May the Lowy Institute hosted a panel of Dr Merriden Varrall, Director of the East Asia Program at the Lowy Institute, Dr Jane Golley, Associate Director of the Australian Centre on China in the World at the Australian National University and Dr John Edwards, Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute, to explore how population dynamics will shape China’s economy and what it means for our economic future at large.
The Lowy Institute acknowledges the support of AMP for this event.

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Panel discussion: Iran’s presidential elections May 17, 2017

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With the race for Iran’s presidency heating up as hardline candidates join the contest, on 10 May the Lowy Institute hosted a panel moderated by Deputy Director Anthony Bubalo to preview Iran’s crucial presidential elections on 19 May. Joining Anthony were Dr Rodger Shanahan, Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute; Dr Naser Ghobadzadeh, from the Australian Catholic University; and Alice Drury, who lived and studied in Iran between 2014 and 2016.

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Panel discussion: Paul Keating and Allan Gyngell on the history of Australian foreign affairs Apr 26, 2017

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Allan Gyngell's new book 'Fear of Abandonment: Australia in the World since 1942' is an authoritative account of the way Australians and their governments have helped create the world we now inhabit.
On 26 April the Lowy Institute hosted Allan Gyngell, former Executive Director of the Lowy Institute and former Prime Minister Paul Keating for a discussion of the history of Australian foreign affairs and its impact on our place in the world now, moderated by Lowy Institute Executive Director Michael Fullilove.

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Panel discussion: Engaging young Australians and Papua New Guineans in the political process Apr 20, 2017

Show notes

Australia and Papua New Guinea have a strong and unique relationship, with ties spanning historical, economic, political and cultural spheres. The depth of our shared history goes far beyond the Kokoda Track and wartime experiences that most Australians associate with PNG. Many Australians don’t realise that PNG is Australia’s nearest neighbour and former colony, marking 42 years of independence this year.
The strong personal relationships that existed at the time of independence are deteriorating and with them an understanding of PNG in Australia, particularly among the next generation of Australian leaders. At the same time, youth engagement in politics on both sides of the Torres Strait is at an historic low. On 10 April the Lowy Institute Aus-PNG Network hosted a panel of exceptional young Australian and Papua New Guinean leaders who are working to engage their peers in the political process.   
Panellists included Barbra Thomas, Executive Director of The Voice Inc., a youth leadership development organisation running programs in PNG’s major universities; Arianne Kassman, Interim Executive Director of Transparency International PNG; a representative from Oaktree, Australia’s largest youth-led development agency; and Benson Saulo, Group Indigenous Opportunities Manager at Australian Unity and founding and former Director of the National Indigenous Youth Leadership Academy. The discussion was chaired by Anna Kirk, Research Associate in the Melanesia Program at the Lowy Institute.

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In conversation: Bobo Lo on what the China-Russia relationship means for the world (Melbourne) Apr 19, 2017

Show notes

With Western countries consumed by domestic problems, will it be China and Russia that now define the rules of global politics?
On 11 April the Lowy Institute at the National Gallery of Victoria hosted an in-conversation with International Securirty Program Director Euan Graham and Nonresident Fellow Bobo Lo on the new Lowy Institute Paper published by Penguin Random House Australia, A Wary Embrace.
In a disorderly world, each has become increasingly assertive, and their partnership has emerged from relative obscurity to acquire a new prominence. Yet appearances are deceptive. Beijing and Moscow have shown no capacity to cooperate on grand strategy or establish new international norms. This is no authoritarian alliance, but a partnership of strategic convenience – pragmatic, calculating and constrained.

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Panel discussion: Why citizens should win the battle for control over sovereign wealth Apr 07, 2017

Show notes

How can it be that governments are wealthier than ever, yet fewer citizens enjoy the benefits that such wealth can bring? Never before have so many governments owned so much wealth in the form of financial assets amassed in state-controlled investment funds. Despite this, deficits persist, inequality worsens and the effects of the 2008 crash still reverberate. “Citizens’ wealth” – creating an additional source of revenue by turning states into wealth-owners - is a long-established idea, but we are yet to see this powerful tool used to its full effect.
On 5 April the Lowy Institute hosted for a panel discussion on this topic with Angela Cummine, political theorist and author of Citizens’ Wealth: Why (and How) Sovereign Funds Should be Managed By the People For the People; David Murray, former CEO of the Commonwealth Bank; Paul Cleary, senior journalist at The Australian; and Lowy Institute Nonresident Fellow Dr John Edwards.

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Panel discussion: The forgotten dimension – climate change and national security Apr 05, 2017

Show notes

Climate change accelerates instability in unexpected ways. Growing water scarcity, declining crop yields, and rising prices are catalysts for displacement and conflict, as witnessed in recent years in Syria and in the European migration crisis. The national security dimension of climate change receives little attention in Australia, but is the subject of intense focus overseas - particularly in the United States.
On 4 April the Lowy Institute screened a condensed version of the 2016 film, The Age of Consequences, which analyses the link between climate change and security, followed by a panel discussion. The panel comprised Sherri Goodman, Founder and Executive Director of the CNA Military Advisory Board; Ian Dunlop, an international oil, gas and coal industry expert and former chair of the Australian Coal Association; and Alan Dupont, Nonresident Fellow at the Lowy Institute and CEO of the Cognoscenti Group.

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In conversation: Bobo Lo on what the China-Russia relationship means for the world Apr 05, 2017

Show notes

With Western countries consumed by domestic problems, will it be China and Russia that now define the rules of global politics?
On 5 April the Lowy Institute hosted the Sydney launch of A Wary Embrace, a new Lowy Institute Paper published by Penguin Random House Australia with Bobo Lo.
In a disorderly world, each has become increasingly assertive, and their partnership has emerged from relative obscurity to acquire a new prominence. Yet appearances are deceptive. Beijing and Moscow have shown no capacity to cooperate on grand strategy or establish new international norms. This is no authoritarian alliance, but a partnership of strategic convenience – pragmatic, calculating and constrained.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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