Who is he? Gary Gray was previously Australia’s special minister of state. He was elected to represent Brand in Western Australia in the House of Representatives during 2007 when current Ambassador to the United States Kim Beazley vacated the seat.…
Julia Gillard
Doing More with Less? Allies Face Aid Challenges in Asia
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By Jason Schulman The Australian government announced drastic changes to its foreign aid budget in December 2012, saying it will reallocate $375 million to fund onshore processing of asylum seekers in the country. The government on February 8 clarified exactly…
The Leaderboard: Bob Carr
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Who is he? Prime Minister Julia Gillard selected Robert “Bob” Carr to fill a vacancy in the Australian Senate in March 2012 and appointed him foreign minister. Earlier in his career, Carr was the premier of New South Wales from…
The Leaderboard: Nicola Roxon
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Who is she? Nicola Roxon was the attorney-general of Australia from December 2011 to February 2, 2013, when she announced her resignation. Roxon will complete her term as a member of the Australian House of Representatives, but will not seek…
The Leaderboard: Margot McCarthy
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Who is she? Dr. Margot McCarthy is currently Australia’s national security advisor (NSA), a position created in 2008 under previous prime minister Kevin Rudd. In this role, she leads the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s National Security and…
Australia: Finding the Economic Challenge
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By Alastair Furnival With the Australian election now announced for September 14, Prime Minister Julia Gillard will be hoping the bad news is done in the first week: an ex-government member of parliament placed on 149 charges of misusing trade…
Friday Five: February 1, 2013
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North Korea announced that following its successful satellite rocket launch in December 2012, it plans to conduct a nuclear test in the near future. CSIS’s Korea Chair Victor Cha has written about this at length, anticipating a provocation in the…
The Leaderboard: Peter Slipper
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Who is he? The Honourable Peter Slipper is an independent member of Australia’s House of Representatives for Fisher, Queensland. He was formerly a member of the Liberal party and Speaker of the House. Before entering politics, Slipper graduated from the…
Reluctant Realists
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By Malcolm Cook and Andrew Shearer Ideological supporters of Julia Gillard, Barack Obama and the Democratic Party of Japan must be ruing what has happened to their supposedly progressive leaders. Supporters of John Howard, George W. Bush and Junichiro Koizumi…
U.S. Marines to Darwin, Australia: Evolution of an Idea
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By Richard W. Teare The agreement announced this week by President Obama and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard under which 250 U.S. Marines – and eventually, 2,500 – will rotate through Australia’s Northern Territory has been a long time coming.…