Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is still using the controversial Chinese-made Da Jiang Innovations (DJI) drones despite other government departments, such as the Australian Border Force (ABF), ceasing their use in May. DFAT’s chief security officer, Joe Talbot, confirmed the drones’ use during a Senate estimates hearing on June 1. “We do…

Beijing officials in Australia have faced probing by the Australian government over the Chinese Communist Party’s persecution of Chinese human rights advocates and religious adherents, including the missing parents of university student Leah Guo following their arrest in February. Guo, who is currently studying at Griffith University on the Gold Coast, is terrified she will…

Following the U.S. decision to open an embassy in the Solomon Islands, Australia is speeding up the construction of a logistics centre and other projects to compete with Beijing for influence in the key strategic South Pacific nation. After cutting its 36-year-old diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 2019, Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands,…

Australia’s tourism industry has urged the Home Affairs Department to speed up tourist visa processing as some travellers face months-long delays to enter the country. In spite of fully reopening to the world in February, Australia has seen a slow recovery for tourist operators and numbers of overseas visitors far below pre-pandemic levels. “If we…

Australia’s tourism industry has urged the Home Affairs Department to speed up tourist visa processing as some travellers face months-long delays to enter the country. In spite of fully reopening to the world in February, Australia has seen a slow recovery for tourist operators and numbers of overseas visitors far below pre-pandemic levels. “If we…

The Australian government is facing renewed calls to place new sanctions on Burma’s (also known as Myanmar) military junta. An analysis (pdf) by the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID), the peak body for Australian non-government organisations, has criticised the government’s decision not to impose any new sanctions since the military coup in February, likening…