Scholarly Focus

Research Areas

Five decades of sustained inquiry into Southeast Asian politics, regional security, and international relations — with a particular focus on Vietnam and the South China Sea.

Core Areas
Fields of Expertise
01

Vietnamese Politics & Foreign Policy

Domestic governance, party-state relations, leadership transitions, and Vietnam's evolving engagement with regional and global powers.

02

South China Sea

Maritime sovereignty disputes, UNCLOS jurisprudence, military postures, and diplomatic negotiations among claimant states.

03

ASEAN & Regional Security

The ASEAN Regional Forum, multilateral security cooperation, the Code of Conduct process, and evolving Indo-Pacific architecture.

04

Civil-Military Relations

The role of armed forces in Southeast Asian political systems, military modernisation, and defence transformation.

05

Comparative Communism

Regime change and maintenance in Leninist party-states, comparing Vietnam with China and the former Soviet bloc.

06

Indo-Pacific Strategy

Australia's strategic posture, US–China competition, and the security implications of great-power rivalry for middle powers.

Detailed Focus
Research Themes

Vietnam Studies

  • Vietnamese Communist Party internal dynamics
  • Doi Moi reforms and governance
  • Vietnam People's Army modernisation
  • Vietnam-China relations
  • Vietnam's multilateral diplomacy

Security & Strategy

  • Maritime security in the South China Sea
  • ASEAN institutional development
  • US forward presence in the Asia-Pacific
  • Counterterrorism in Southeast Asia
  • Australia's defence policy

Political Systems

  • Authoritarian resilience and regime maintenance
  • Civil-military relations in transitional states
  • Electoral politics and peacekeeping (Cambodia)
  • Public security apparatus in Vietnam

International Relations

  • Soviet/Russian engagement with Asia
  • India-Vietnam strategic relations
  • Multilateral institutions and regional order
  • Disaster response and civil-military coordination

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