Lowy Institute

Australians increasingly see China as an economic partner rather than a security threat — while still bracing for it as a long-term military risk.
That's one of the striking findings from the 22nd Lowy Institute Poll, launched in Sydney. At the launch, Poll author Charlie Lyons-Jones joined Lowy Institute India Chair Shruti Pandalai and The Interpreter's Managing Editor Dan Flitton, moderated by Research Director Mihai Sora, to unpack a poll that shows record numbers of Australians feeling unsafe in the world, trust in the US at an all-time low, and the gap between how much Australians trust America and China narrowing to just three points.
The panel covers Australians' growing sense of insecurity in the world, with 53 per cent now saying they feel unsafe, a record high for the poll. Trust in the US has fallen to a record low of 31 per cent, while trust in China has climbed to 28 per cent, narrowing the gap between the two powers to just three points. Support for AUKUS remains firm despite wavering confidence in Washington, and a majority of Australians still back the US alliance even as confidence in President Trump collapses. The panel also discusses Australian attitudes to India ahead of Prime Minister Modi's visit, and what that visit needs to achieve. They explore waning public support for Ukraine as the war drags on, rising concern that the risks of AI outweigh its benefits, and what the poll's findings on climate concern reveal about the mood driving Australian politics.
Read the full 2026 Lowy Institute Poll at lowyinstitute.org.
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Southeast Asia has always sat at the intersection of great power competition, but the pressures bearing down on the region today are testing its institutions, alliances and sense of common purpose like never before. Since the United States went to war with Iran and blockaded the Strait of Hormuz, soaring fuel and fertiliser costs have pushed several Southeast Asian nations into a state of emergency. Border tensions, the ongoing civil war in Myanmar, and an increasingly fierce rivalry between Washington and Beijing are all straining the region's capacity to hold together.
In this episode, Lowy Institute Southeast Asia Program Director Hunter Marston speaks with two of the region's leading analysts — Dr Lina Alexandra from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta and Dr Ja-Ian Chong from the National University of Singapore — about what Southeast Asia needs to do to maintain its relevance, its unity, and its peace.
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Southeast Asia’s economic and geostrategic significance is on the rise, but China’s expanding dominance and a more transactional United States are challenging the region’s future. As Washington and Beijing force unwanted choices on Southeast Asia, regional states are struggling to defend the open and interconnected order that undergirds their security and prosperity. Hear from international experts about how Southeast Asian countries are navigating China’s growing power, increasing uncertainty from the United States, and a more fragmented global order.
Featuring Lowy Institute Research Director Dr Hunter Marston, Dr Lina Alexandra from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies Indonesia, and Dr Ja-Ian Chong from the National University of Singapore, and moderated by Senior Fellow Richard McGregor.
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Great power competition, maritime expansionism, and disruptions to global supply chains are heightening geopolitical tensions in the Indo-Pacific. Many observers question whether the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is capable of responding to a crisis or conflict in the region. The Lowy Institute hosts three leading experts to discuss traditional and non-traditional security challenges in the Indo-Pacific, existing crisis coordination mechanisms and gaps in regional response capabilities.
The conversation features Dr Bec Strating, Don McLain Gill, and Murni Abdul Hamid and is moderated by Dr Hunter Marston, Director of the Southeast Asia Program.
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The New START Treaty has expired, China is quadrupling its nuclear arsenal, and the Trump administration has yet to prioritise arms control. Rose Gottemoeller, a former chief US negotiator of New START and ex-Deputy Secretary General of NATO, speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen about the growing risks of a three-way nuclear stand-off, what the wars in Ukraine and Iran reveal about the future of warfare, and why she will always be a believer in arms control agreements.
More episodes of the Lowy Institute's podcasts are available on your favourite podcast apps, including Spotify, YouTube and Apple.
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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.