CONTEMPORARY SECURITY CHALLENGES SEMINAR A joint initiative between the Australian Army Research Centre and Charles Sturt University By the middle of the 21st century, military forces will contain tens of thousands of robots, and the decisions of human commanders at every level will be informed and shaped by artificial intelligence. While the future is impossible to predict, trends in technology and warfare make this a near certainly. Military organisations must plan now for this new era of warfare. …

A spectrum of security challenges ranging from great power contestation, looming environmental catastrophe and a spectrum of governance challenges are leading to a significant security overhaul in Australia with significant implications for. This talk reviews the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing Australia and what that means for how the Australian Defence Force positions itself for the future. … Developing a Plan B for the ADF: some implications arising from a Geostrategic SWOT …

UK Army Brigadier Andrew Harrison, DSO, MBE, discusses the vagaries of warfare in the information age where barriers to communication can hinder the passage of information or where information may spill out into areas where it is undesirable. He discusses how changing behaviours in an adversary is the aim of information warfare and its influence. He also discusses strategic communication and the ‘unexploited ground’ between kinetic effects such as joint fires and manoeuvre and the virtual battleground of …

The British Army’s concept for future warfare Conceptual Land Force 2035: The British Army’s concept for future war emerging technologies, force structures and operating concepts required to fight and win from 2035 … The British Army's Concept for Future War …

Session 4 of the Chief of Army Land Forces Seminar 2018 (CALFS18) entitled ‘The character of future Indo-Pacific land forces’ was presented by Major General Kathryn Toohey (Head Land Capability), General Robert B Brown (Commanding General United States Army Pacific), Professor Ji You (Head, Department of Government and Public Administration University of Macau) and Professor Genevieve Bell (Distinguished Professor Florence Violet McKenzie Chair, Director of the Autonomy, Agency & Assurance (3A) Institute …

Session 3 of the Chief of Army Land Forces Seminar 2018 (CALFS18) entitled ‘Generating Land Power through partnering’ was presented by Major General Gregory Bilton (Deputy Chief Joint Operations), Brigadier General Gilbert Toropo (Commander Papua New Guinea Defence Force), Mr Richard Sadleir (First Assistant Secretary International Security Division, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) and Mr Glenn Dunbier (Deputy Executive Director, Australian Civil-Military Centre). Major General Bilton referred to …

Session 2 of the Chief of Army Land Forces Seminar 2018 (CALFS18) entitled ‘Land power and countering violent extremism’ was presented by Major General Adam Findlay (Commander Special Operations), Lieutenant General Rolando Joselito Bautista (Commanding General Philippine Army), Ms Katja Theodorakis (Program Manager for Foreign/Security Policy and Counter Terrorism, Konrad-Adenauer Foundation Regional Programme Australia and the Pacific) and Mr Duncan Lewis (Director General of Security, Australian Secret …

Session 1 of the Chief of Army Land Forces Seminar 2018 (CALFS18) entitled ‘The Indo-Pacific: the region of global connection’ was hosted by Lieutenant General Rick Burr (Chief of Army) and included The Hon Christopher Pyne (Minister for Defence), Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanyake (Commander of the Sri Lanka Army), Mr Michael Shoebridge (Director Defence and Strategy, Australian Strategic Policy Institute), and Mr Tom Hamilton (Acting Deputy Secretary, Strategic Policy and Intelligence Group). The Chief …

Peter Singer and Emerson Brooking co-authored the best selling book, Like War: the weaponization of social media. This presentation will explore the collision of war, politics, and social media, where victory or defeat is now only a click away. Through the weaponization of social media, the internet is changing war and politics, just as war and politics are changing the internet. Terrorists livestream their attacks, “Twitter wars” produce real‑world casualties, and viral misinformation alters not just the …

Since 2014 Colonel Pete Connolly has researched in China, PNG, Timor-Leste and Fiji for a PhD investigating Chinese interests in Melanesia.  He has sought to understand the deep complexity of Chinese economic, diplomatic and security interests on the ground, and how these interact with the interests of Pacific Islanders. This presentation will give a brief overview of these Chinese interests, and then focus on the security implications of the Chinese presence in Melanesia, including the potential for …