Lavina Lee is a senior lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University, Sydney, and was appointed to the Council of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) by the Australian minister of defense in 2020. She is the author of the book US Hegemony and International Legitimacy: Norms, Power and Followership in the Wars on Iraq (Routledge, 2010) and has published numerous articles, book chapters, and research reports for the Australian government and think tanks on Indian foreign and security policy, opportunities and weaknesses of the Quad, Chinese influence in Southeast Asia, and the role of democracy promotion in the Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy. She also regularly publishes commentary in The Australian, the Australian Financial Review, the Hindustan Times, and the New Straits Times, as well as with specialist policy outlets such as the Lowy Interpreter and ASPI Strategist. Dr. Lee has commerce and law degrees from the University of New South Wales, an MA in international peace and security from King’s College London, and a PhD in international relations from the University of Sydney.