UWA Defence and Security Institute

14/10/2026

In the lead-up to Land Forces 2026, the UWA DSI was pleased to host our Strategic Policy Forum on Military and Disaster Medicine led by Dr Tim Inglis. The forum explored the findings of our latest Black Swan Strategy Paper, Strategic and Operational Priorities for the Growth of Military Medicine, authored by Dr Inglis.

Bringing together leaders and experts from across defence, healthcare, academia and government, the discussion focused on the future of Australia's military medicine capability, including workforce recruitment, medical literacy and training, and long-term sustainment.

At a time of increasing geopolitical uncertainty, military medicine remains a critical strategic capability, supporting operational readiness, Australia's northern defence, and broader national resilience.

A special thank you to Ukrainian Ambassador to Australia and New Zealand Vasyl Myroshnychenko, Dr Fiona Wood AO, Dr Andy Robertson CSC PSM, and Dr Helen Wilcox, for their insightful contributions, and to the distinguished leaders and experts who joined us for this important discussion.

Please read the paper here -https://defenceuwa.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Black-Swan-Strategy-Paper-17-Strategic-and-Operational-Priorities-for-the-Growth-of-Military-Medicine.pdf
The University of Western Australia

05/10/2026

Last week, as part of Fellowship, our fellow Nikita Singla along with Dr. Troy Lee-Brown, visited Southern Ports of Albany and Bunbury to learn more about their role in Western Australia’s trade, regional communities and future growth.

A port’s relationship with its surrounding community is just as important to its long-term sustainability as its physical infrastructure. The visits offered a valuable perspective on how ports can grow while remaining connected to the communities around them.

For Australia–India trade, Southern Ports present an interesting opportunity to develop new and more efficient pathways for commodities such as spodumene, alumina, copper and other critical minerals at Bunbury and grains and woodchips at Albany.

This is at the heart of the Maitri Fellowship: exploring how stronger connections between ports, communities and countries can support more resilient and future-ready Australia–India trade corridors.

Grateful to the teams at Southern Ports for the warm welcome and generous conversations. The Maitri Program aims to further the Australia-India relationship at the bilateral level through supporting economic, cultural and research projects.

This project is supported by the Centre for Australia-India Relations. Read more about the Maitri Fellowships here: https://www.australiaindiacentre.org.au/Fellows2026
Read more about Nikita here: https://defenceuwa.com.au/about/people/nikita-singla/

24/09/2026

The second report in a series of five from our joint project with the Council for Strategic and Defense Research on 'Enhancing Australia-India Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA) Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific' is out now!

This report examines Australia-India cooperation in anti-submarine warfare (ASW) in an increasingly contested and unpredictable Indo-Pacific region. The authors, Commodore Peter Leavy AM, CSM, GAICD (Retd) and Read Admiral Shishir C. Verma (Retd), argue that campaign-level cooperation in this area is possible without alliance-style integration, with space for furthering doctrinal alignment and decision-grade information sharing. A shift from planned exercises to enduring ‘real-world’ operational cooperation, supported by a more institutionalised relationship, is a key recommendation from the report.

The UDA Project is supported by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Download the full report here:https://defenceuwa.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/DSI_CSDR_Australia-India-Cooperation-ASW-DigitalCompression2-1.pdf

Find more information on the project and the first report here: https://defenceuwa.com.au/australia-india-uda-program-satpi-grant/

17/09/2026

Our latest Policy Brief is out now!

Authored by Research Analyst Intern Max Stewart, Northern Alignment: How Australia and Canada can Capitalise on Shared Experiences in Northern Development, argues for a closer Australia-Canada bilateral anchored in their common objectives in their respective northern regions. The recently reinvigorated Canadian Australian Public Policy Initiative gives these ideas extra impetus.

"Enhanced collaboration would accelerate policy learning and create more resilient northern communities that will better help secure Australian and Canadian security in an era of increasing global uncertainty."

Read it below 👇
https://defenceuwa.com.au/publications/policy-briefs/northern-alignment-how-australia-and-canada-can-capitalise-on-shared-experiences-in-northern-development/

10/09/2026

09/09/2026

'Troy Lee-Brown, a research fellow at the The University of Western Australia’s Defence and Security Institute, said with the strategic environment in the region deteriorating, Canberra should do a better job in explaining Aukus to Australians. Aukus, he said, was delivering results. The Submarine Rotational Force-West, an Aukus initiative where Australia will host a rotational presence of UK and US nuclear submarines at HMAS Stirling near Perth in Western Australia, will start operations next year. “But the timeline of the Aukus project is measured over multiple decades, with the eventual delivery of SSN Aukus from the early 2040s,” he said.'

Under the Australia-UK-US security pact, Canberra will get eight nuclear-powered submarines at an estimated cost of up to US$266 billion.

09/09/2026

This week UWA DSI are delighted to welcome Fellow Nikita Singla to The University of Western Australia as she commences her Research Fellowship!

Nikita will be researching the development of an Australia–India Future-Ready Ports Framework. A strategic research report and policy blueprint will examine how Western Australia’s evolving port system can underpin resilient Australia-India supply chains for containerised and bulk cargo, including critical minerals. This project further advances research on future-ready port systems and drives closer Australia-India supply-chain cooperation in an era of heightened geostrategic competition.

Nikita will be kickstarting her research project by visiting Western Australia’s main ports infrastructure and the relevant key maritime stakeholders.

The Maitri Program aims to further the Australia-India relationship at the bilateral level through supporting economic, cultural and research projects.

This project is supported by the Centre for Australia-India Relations.

Read more about the Maitri Fellowships here: https://www.australiaindiacentre.org.au/Fellows2026

Read more about Nikita here: https://defenceuwa.com.au/about/people/nikita-singla/

16/08/2026

The University of Western Australia Defence and Security Institute Research Fellow Dr Troy Lee-Brown is quoted in the South China Morning Post on threats to submarine cables:
'Troy Lee-Brown, a research fellow at the University of Western Australia Defence and Security Institute, said while the threats predominantly came from accidental damage by anchors and fishing vessels, there was a “growing risk for intentional sabotage as evidenced elsewhere in the world”. This was concerning as “Australia relies heavily on subsea cables for its data, and many of those cables come ashore in the same areas, such as in Perth”, he said.'

Australia should treat cable resilience not only as a domestic security issue but also as a shared regional project, analysts say.

13/08/2026

UWA DSI Research Fellow Dr Troy Lee-Brown writes in The Strategist. 'The Cocos (Keeling) Islands present an opportunity for Defence ­– as the largest economic stakeholder – to cooperate closely with environmental managers and marine scientists. If successful, they can ensure Defence’s ongoing presence on these strategically important islands.'

The marine park around the Cocos (Keeling) Islands should be understood as a national security asset, not just a conservation zone. This demands a whole-of-government approach coordinated by Australia’s Department of Defence, other Commonwealth and ...

05/08/2026

💫 UWA DSI is delighted to welcome our Semester 2 Interns! ⭐

Isabella Hulm joins us as a second-year Bachelor of International Relations student, specialising in Chinese Language and Culture Studies at UWA.

Ethan Horn joins us from Curtin University and is currently in his final semester of a Master of International Security. He also holds a double Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Cybercrime, Security, Intelligence and Counterterrorism.

Anna Ford is currently in her second-year at UWA majoring in Political Science and English Literature, with a completed minor in Indonesian Language and Culture.

We look forward to working with Isabella, Ethan and Anna throughout the semester, and to sharing their Policy Briefs with our network as they become part of the UWA DSI team. Welcome aboard!