About this Event
Title: An Unlikely Actor? The Russia Factor in the South China Sea Dispute. Lessons for Australia and the EU
Abstract: The ongoing territorial dispute in the South China Sea (SCS) has become one of the principal pillars of geopolitical and military-strategic friction and competition in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. Just like the war in Ukraine, this regional hot spot draws strategic attention of not just immediate littoral claimants but also major external players, including Russia.
Despite being geographically remote from the SCS, Moscow has a long history of strategic interaction with the disputed area, including through a prolonged military presence in Vietnam.
After two decades of strategic decline and low-key engagement in regional affairs, Moscow under President Vladimir Putin has been progressively reasserting its place in the Indo-Pacific. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 followed by the subsequent imposition of widespread sanctions acted as an additional accelerators to Moscow’s closer interaction with the region.
Bio: Dr Alexey D. Muraviev is Associate Professor of National Security and Strategic Studies at Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia. He is the founder and Director of the Strategic Flashlight forum on national security and strategy at Curtin.
Alexey is the former Head of Department of Social Sciences and Security Studies at Curtin. Between 2016 and 2021, Alexey was academic lead of Curtin defence strategic initiative. He was also a non-residential fellow at Sea Power Centre Australia, the Royal Australian Navy; inaugural scholar-in residence at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute; and national judge, Department of Defence Eureka Prize for Outstanding Science in Safeguarding Australia (2019 to 2021).
Alexey has published widely in the field of national security, strategic and defence studies. His research interests include problems of modern maritime power; contemporary defence and strategic policy; Russia as a Pacific power; Russia’s strategic engagement in the Indo-Pacific; and Australian national security and defence. Among his latest publications are Alexey D Muraviev, Battle Reading the Russian Pacific Fleet 2023–2030, Sea Power Paper, Canberra: Sea Power Centre Australia, 2023; Alexey D Muraviev, ‘Russia and the South China Sea’ in Howard M. Hensel (ed), Security Dynamics in the South China Sea, London and New York, Routledge, 2024;
He is a member of the International Editorial and Advisory Board, The Australian Journal of Defence and Strategic Studies, Australian Department of Defence; member of the Australian Member Committee, Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region (AU-CSCAP); member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, London; member of the Advisory Board, Australia Public Network, and other organisations and think tanks.
Alexey is regularly interviewed by national and international media, among them ABC TV and Radio, the Australian, Sydney Morning Herald, BBC World News and BBC Radio, Bloomberg, CNN, Fox News, TRT World, Channel News Asia, The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Financial Times and other.
He is the Contributor and Strategic Policy Analyst at the Sky News Australia.
-Light lunch will be provided upon arrival
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
RMIT University City Campus, Building 8, Level 4, Room 012 (Megaflex 2), 360 Swanston Street, Melbourne, Australia
AUD 0.00
