Critical Mineral Competition and Building Processing Capacity
Competition for critical minerals is extending beyond securing mineral deposits towards developing industrial processing capacity and strengthening supply chain resilience.
Chokepoint or Control Point? Guardians of the Strait.
Transit through the Strait is increasingly shaped by the interaction of military, commercial, diplomatic and legal factors.
Critical Mineral Competition: Restrictions, Disruptions and Resilience
Japan’s experience highlights that supply chain competition is not only about access to critical minerals but also about the industrial capacity to process and distribute them.
Before the Battlefield: Industrial Power, Supply Chains and Strategic Resilience
Competition is not only about hard power and armed forces but also about ensuring countries have the industrial base to sustain military power. Strategic competition is becoming noticeably about resources, supply chains, manufacturing, and energy security that underpin military power.
Strategic Resources: Critical Mineral Diversification and Emerging Markets
Critical minerals are increasingly being viewed as strategic resources linked to industrial, economic, and national security interests.
The Indo-Pacific’s Strategic Shift: Asia’s Changing Security Environment
The reported deal signed between India and Vietnam for BrahMos supersonic cruise missile systems could be more than an arms transfer.
Quad-Fiji: Supply Chains, Security, and a Regional Voice
The Quad-Fiji agreement may indicate the Quad becoming more operational in the Indo-Pacific
Managed Competition: The U.S.-China Stabilisation Phase
The U.S.-China summit ended without any major outcomes. Instead, the meeting was an assessment of positions on a range of topics, with attempts at stabilisation.
Financial Chokepoint: Economic Fury Targeting Evasion Systems
The U.S. is now targeting Chinese refineries and financial networks associated with the Iranian oil trade.
Monetised Maritime Chokepoints: How Access is Becoming a Revenue Stream
Chokepoints are becoming revenue streams where access is shaped by demand.
Controlling the Flow: The U.S. Maritime Enforcement Strategy
The specific targeting of vessels signals how the U.S. aims to control maritime space beyond the blockade.
Pacific Alignment Under Pressure: The U.S., New Zealand, the Cook Islands, and China.
The New Zealand–Cook Islands defence partnership coincides with high-level U.S. engagement.
2025 U.S. National Security Strategy: A Pivot and Regional Reset
The 2025 U.S. National Security Strategy (NSS) marks a structural departure from the post-Cold War American universalist grand strategy.