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The culminating point? The big five, 21 June 2026 edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Jun 20, 2026 · 17 min read · Foreign Policy

The culminating point? The big five, 21 June 2026 edition

Bridges, blockades and military personnel reform. The big five, 14 June edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Jun 13, 2026 · 23 min read · Defense

Bridges, blockades and military personnel reform. The big five, 14 June edition

The writing is on the (kremlin) wall for Putin and choking the Crimea land bridge. The big five, 7…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Jun 6, 2026 · 20 min read · Foreign Policy

The writing is on the (kremlin) wall for Putin and choking the Crimea land bridge. The big five, 7…

Highway to hell: Ukraine's logistics lockdown, Taiwan’s littoral command and China’s evolving…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·May 30, 2026 · 18 min read · Defense

Highway to hell: Ukraine's logistics lockdown, Taiwan’s littoral command and China’s evolving…

The interdiction war: How Ukraine is cutting Russia's Southern lifelines, plus XI's big week and a…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·May 23, 2026 · 21 min read · Defense

The interdiction war: How Ukraine is cutting Russia's Southern lifelines, plus XI's big week and a…

Russia has no sanctuary left. Ukraine's deep strike, the Beijing summit and the shape of a…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·May 16, 2026 · 18 min read · Defense

Russia has no sanctuary left. Ukraine's deep strike, the Beijing summit and the shape of a…

Whose victory day? Ukraine gives Putin permission for his parade, and the evolving pacific security…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·May 9, 2026 · 26 min read · Defense

Whose victory day? Ukraine gives Putin permission for his parade, and the evolving pacific security…

No safe rear: Ukraine, the pacific, and the limits of strategic depth

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·May 2, 2026 · 20 min read · Defense

No safe rear: Ukraine, the pacific, and the limits of strategic depth

Frontlines and strategic fault lines - Ukraine's deeper strategic strikes and intensifying…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Apr 25, 2026 · 16 min read · Defense

Frontlines and strategic fault lines - Ukraine's deeper strategic strikes and intensifying…

Turning the corner: Momentum builds in Ukraine’s strike & ground defence campaigns while pacific…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Apr 19, 2026 · 23 min read · Defense

Turning the corner: Momentum builds in Ukraine’s strike & ground defence campaigns while pacific…

More ambition, same architecture: Australia's 2026 national defence strategy

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Apr 16, 2026 · 12 min read · Defense

More ambition, same architecture: Australia's 2026 national defence strategy

The learning curve: Ukraine’s attrition campaign and the PLA’s Iran war study

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Apr 11, 2026 · 23 min read · Defense

The learning curve: Ukraine’s attrition campaign and the PLA’s Iran war study

Strikes, summits and the possibility of boots on the ground in Iran: The week that shaped two wars. The big five, 5 April edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Apr 4, 2026 · 23 min read · Foreign Policy

Strikes, summits and the possibility of boots on the ground in Iran: The week that shaped two wars. The big five, 5 April edition

Should America put boots on the ground in Iran, Ukraine disrupts Russia's spring offensive, and China's coercion: Three theatres, one week.

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Mar 22, 2026 · 22 min read · Foreign Policy

Should America put boots on the ground in Iran, Ukraine disrupts Russia's spring offensive, and China's coercion: Three theatres, one week.

Two Iran wars, two theories of victory and the lessons for a distant pacific

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Mar 16, 2026 · 10 min read · Defense

Two Iran wars, two theories of victory and the lessons for a distant pacific

From Kyiv to taipei: Three theatres, much to learn. The big five, 15 March edition.

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Mar 14, 2026 · 20 min read · Foreign Policy

From Kyiv to taipei: Three theatres, much to learn. The big five, 15 March edition.

A strategic learning deficit: Western military institutions ignored Ukraine war lessons. The big five, 8 March edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Mar 7, 2026 · 20 min read · Defense

A strategic learning deficit: Western military institutions ignored Ukraine war lessons. The big five, 8 March edition

Decapitation, epic fury and the unknown

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Mar 2, 2026 · 10 min read · Defense

Decapitation, epic fury and the unknown

The New Iran war: Trajectory of the war and its impact on Ukraine and the pacific

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Feb 28, 2026 · 20 min read · Defense

The New Iran war: Trajectory of the war and its impact on Ukraine and the pacific

Four years of war, no end in sight. The big five 22 February edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Feb 21, 2026 · 17 min read · Defense

Four years of war, no end in sight. The big five 22 February edition

Are you ready? Zelenskyy's message at munich. The big five, 15 February edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Feb 14, 2026 · 22 min read · Defense

Are you ready? Zelenskyy's message at munich. The big five, 15 February edition

Rushing to failure with current peace talks? The big five, 8 February edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Feb 7, 2026 · 14 min read · Defense

Rushing to failure with current peace talks? The big five, 8 February edition

Putin cannot afford a peace deal now. The big five, 1 February edition

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Jan 31, 2026 · 15 min read · Defense

Putin cannot afford a peace deal now. The big five, 1 February edition

Davos don insults allies, deterred on greenland (for now). Ukraine peace talks. Pla purges persist

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Jan 24, 2026 · 18 min read · Defense

Davos don insults allies, deterred on greenland (for now). Ukraine peace talks. Pla purges persist

Mr zelenskyy goes to kupiansk. Putin huddles in Moscow. Chinese carrier off Japan. The big five, 14…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Dec 13, 2025 · 17 min read · Defense

Mr zelenskyy goes to kupiansk. Putin huddles in Moscow. Chinese carrier off Japan. The big five, 14…

She’ll be right, mate: The new u.s. National security strategy and the pacific

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Dec 5, 2025 · 14 min read · Defense

She’ll be right, mate: The new u.s. National security strategy and the pacific

Peace negotiations stumble on, Putin lays down a marker, and the fall of yermak: The big five, 30…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Nov 29, 2025 · 23 min read · Defense

Peace negotiations stumble on, Putin lays down a marker, and the fall of yermak: The big five, 30…

The Putin- pact is Afghanistan all over again, but with much worse outcomes. The big five, 23…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Nov 22, 2025 · 24 min read · Defense

The Putin- pact is Afghanistan all over again, but with much worse outcomes. The big five, 23…

Can Russia win in Ukraine on its current trajectory: Assessing Russia’s 2025 war effort

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Nov 18, 2025 · 10 min read · Defense

Can Russia win in Ukraine on its current trajectory: Assessing Russia’s 2025 war effort

The battle of pokrovsk, China's plan for long-term confrontation and China cranky at Japan: The big…

Mick Ryan · Mick Ryan ·Nov 16, 2025 · 16 min read · Defense

The battle of pokrovsk, China's plan for long-term confrontation and China cranky at Japan: The big…