Adam Leslie is President and Founder of OTX International and The Alliance Futures Initiative. He is retained for judgment, structural insight, and disciplined execution in high-consequence environments.
Background
Adam is a former Australian military officer, diplomat and intelligence professional, with experience across national security, strategic policy, market entry, regional engagement and alliance development. His career spans sovereign intelligence service, diplomatic engagement, military aviation, executive nonprofit leadership, and U.S. government market architecture.
He previously served as Executive Director of ASPI USA, where he worked on Indo-Pacific security, defence industrial cooperation, AUKUS, technology policy and allied strategic integration.
Work at TAFI
Through TAFI, Adam focuses on converting allied strategic intent into practical policy, industrial and operational outcomes. His work examines the intersection of national security, economic statecraft, defence technology, irregular competition and regional resilience, with a particular focus on Australia’s role in the Indo-Pacific and the future of allied defence integration.
Recent Work
The Target Is Not the Ship. It Is the Price of Risk.
Commentary
Maritime coercion targets the price of risk rather than the ship — why an unconfirmed report of IRGC plans against Asian shipping still matters, and why economic deterrence by denial should replace escalating punishment.
Beyond the Submarine
TAFI Perspective
TAFI’s submission to the Independent Public Inquiry into AUKUS: preserve AUKUS, preserve and expand SRF-West, and discontinue the sovereign nuclear-powered submarine pathway in favour of the capabilities where Australia holds a comparative security advantage.