Extended Nuclear Deterrence and the Restraint of Non-Nuclear Allies: Material Cooperation and Strategic Dialogue. Extended nuclear deterrence is central to the security commitments offered by the US to its European and Asian allies, but little is known about why non-nuclear allies ask for the nuclear assurances they do and how they influence the assurances they ultimately receive. Using the lenses of intra-alliance bargaining, the role and composition of assurances, and domestic and internationa ....Extended Nuclear Deterrence and the Restraint of Non-Nuclear Allies: Material Cooperation and Strategic Dialogue. Extended nuclear deterrence is central to the security commitments offered by the US to its European and Asian allies, but little is known about why non-nuclear allies ask for the nuclear assurances they do and how they influence the assurances they ultimately receive. Using the lenses of intra-alliance bargaining, the role and composition of assurances, and domestic and international interactions, the project investigates why non-nuclear allies often seek modest extended nuclear deterrence guarantees when they could push for more ambitious commitments. The outcomes of the project will advance theoretical understanding of alliances, assurance and nuclear strategy, with direct relevance to foreign policy and nuclear disarmament.Read moreRead less
Uncovering the organisational dynamics of pirates and maritime terrorists. This project will develop a novel framework to assess the organisational dynamics of two major maritime threats: piracy syndicates and maritime-capable terrorist groups. The results will allow analysts and policymakers to understand the behaviour of violent maritime organisations, and to maximise the effectiveness of policies designed to stop them.
Police corruption: an underestimated legitimacy and security risk. This project analyses police corruption in four states and makes recommendations for reducing it. While most states now recognise corruption as a problem, many are reluctant to address the issue of police corruption; yet when police officers collude with organised crime (for example, in drugs or arms trafficking), corruption can be a serious security risk.
The corruption-organised crime nexus in four European states, with particular reference to people smuggling. Considering its importance to Australia, too little research is being done here on Europe. The EU alone accounts for c.40% of Australia's trade. Yet most research on Europe undertaken here is either historical (pre-1945) and/or of individual countries. Relatively little is in the social sciences. One benefit of this project is that it ensures that comparative social science research o ....The corruption-organised crime nexus in four European states, with particular reference to people smuggling. Considering its importance to Australia, too little research is being done here on Europe. The EU alone accounts for c.40% of Australia's trade. Yet most research on Europe undertaken here is either historical (pre-1945) and/or of individual countries. Relatively little is in the social sciences. One benefit of this project is that it ensures that comparative social science research on Europe is conducted in Australia. Second, Australia experiences many problems facing European states, albeit usually on a smaller scale. The potential benefits of learning vicariously from others' experiences are obvious. Third, this will enhance this country's expertise in this strategically important area. Read moreRead less
Expectations and commitments in the Australia-USA alliance. This project aims to investigate the gap between the high expectations of mutual support and the lack of detailed security commitments in the Australia-US Alliance. The project intends to use a focused approach that captures thematic aspects of the alliance through project frames and historical slices across time. Expected outcomes can advance understanding of how alliances operate as security institutions. The outcomes can help to prom ....Expectations and commitments in the Australia-USA alliance. This project aims to investigate the gap between the high expectations of mutual support and the lack of detailed security commitments in the Australia-US Alliance. The project intends to use a focused approach that captures thematic aspects of the alliance through project frames and historical slices across time. Expected outcomes can advance understanding of how alliances operate as security institutions. The outcomes can help to promote a more informed national conversation about the costs and benefits of Australia's security relationship with the United States of America (USA) and contribute to debates over the future of the Australia-USA Alliance during a period of strategic uncertainty.Read moreRead less
Creating Accountability: Improving Responses to Forced Displacement Crimes. This project aims to investigate how the United Nations and individual states can respond to forced displacement crimes through seven emerging accountability mechanisms at the domestic, regional, and international levels. The growth of conflict-induced forced migration is at unprecedented levels, driven in part by states that deliberately displace their own populations in contravention of international law. This project ....Creating Accountability: Improving Responses to Forced Displacement Crimes. This project aims to investigate how the United Nations and individual states can respond to forced displacement crimes through seven emerging accountability mechanisms at the domestic, regional, and international levels. The growth of conflict-induced forced migration is at unprecedented levels, driven in part by states that deliberately displace their own populations in contravention of international law. This project will use a comparative and focused approach to examine the effectiveness of the range of current efforts to hold state and individual perpetrators accountable. In so doing, it will directly inform the Australian and international policy-making response to such crimes with the goal of averting future forced migrant movements.Read moreRead less
Australian public opinion towards foreign and defence policy since 1960: patterns, explanations, policies. The issues of foreign affairs and national security have become increasingly important to Australians in the wake of the Bali bombing, the invasion of Iraq, and the 'War on Terror.' However there are a number of unknowns in research of this kind. What are the public's key concerns? How have our current attitudes been shaped and how much have our opinions changed in recent years? This projec ....Australian public opinion towards foreign and defence policy since 1960: patterns, explanations, policies. The issues of foreign affairs and national security have become increasingly important to Australians in the wake of the Bali bombing, the invasion of Iraq, and the 'War on Terror.' However there are a number of unknowns in research of this kind. What are the public's key concerns? How have our current attitudes been shaped and how much have our opinions changed in recent years? This project would provide crucial insights into the topic, identifying those countries seen as the principal threats to Australia, examining how and why people feel that way, and most importantly, indicating what governments can do to better inform and shape public opinion in foreign affairs and defence-related matters.Read moreRead less
From Emergence to Demise: Examining the Dynamic Life Cycle of Terrorist Campaigns. Australia has made a long term commitment to the global campaign against terrorism, under the sound premise that it will take a persistent investment of energy and resources to succeed, and the notion that success in this struggle will be contingent on the depth of our knowledge about the nature of the threat. This project will contribute to this effort by enhancing global understanding of the different stages of ....From Emergence to Demise: Examining the Dynamic Life Cycle of Terrorist Campaigns. Australia has made a long term commitment to the global campaign against terrorism, under the sound premise that it will take a persistent investment of energy and resources to succeed, and the notion that success in this struggle will be contingent on the depth of our knowledge about the nature of the threat. This project will contribute to this effort by enhancing global understanding of the different stages of the dynamic life cycle of terrorist campaigns, and by formulating empirically based policy recommendations that will move beyond flawed quick-fix solutions, toward the building of a consistent long-term incremental strategy for managing a threat that will never fully disappear.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101123
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$393,359.00
Summary
Through their eyes: Rethinking the role of information operations in counterinsurgency scholarship and strategy. Western counterinsurgency forces regularly lose the 'information battle' to militarily and economically inferior insurgent forces. This project explores why and how insurgent adversaries often prove superior in shaping the perceptions of local populations and winning their support. Through case studies of East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan, the project identifies the key strategic pilla ....Through their eyes: Rethinking the role of information operations in counterinsurgency scholarship and strategy. Western counterinsurgency forces regularly lose the 'information battle' to militarily and economically inferior insurgent forces. This project explores why and how insurgent adversaries often prove superior in shaping the perceptions of local populations and winning their support. Through case studies of East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan, the project identifies the key strategic pillars in insurgent information operations in order to critically analyse and revise the role of information operations in counterinsurgency theory and practice. This research will advance scholarly understanding of the psychosocial dynamics of influence during conflict and challenge dominant trends in counterinsurgency theory and practice.Read moreRead less