Victoria, Canada, 31 August-2 September 2026 - The Chair of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, attended the 2026 Indo-Pacific Chiefs of Defence Conference, co-hosted by General Jennie Carignan, Canada's Chief of the Defence Staff, and Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of U.S. Pacific Command. Held under the theme "Strengthening Collective Security: Navigating Challenges in a Dynamic Indo-Pacific Landscape", the conference brought together senior military leaders to discuss shared security challenges, deterrence, resilience, and emerging technologies.
At the margins of the conference, Admiral Cavo Dragone met with General Carignan and Admiral Paparo to discuss the shared security environments of the Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific regions. "The Indo-Pacific region is important to NATO, given that developments there can directly affect Euro-Atlantic security, and vice versa. And our growing cooperation with our Indo-Pacific Four Partners is a clear example of our focus on this matter," said Admiral Cavo Dragone.
During the conference, Admiral Cavo Dragone also held exchanges with Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha (Retd), Secretary, Ministry of Defence of Sri Lanka; General NS Raja Subramani, Chief of Defence Staff of India; Vice Admiral Aaron Beng, Chief of Defence Force of Singapore; General Yang Zhibin, Commander of the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army (PLA); Admiral Mark Hammond, Chief of the Defence Force of Australia; and General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States. These engagements provided an opportunity to exchange views on regional and global security developments, deepen dialogue, and identify areas for practical cooperation.
The discussions in Victoria covered technology and AI-informed decision-making, cross-domain deterrence, defence industrial bases and public-private investment, and expanding multilateral cooperation, including command and control, information-sharing, exercises and activities. Participants also addressed leadership, human capital, defence force professionalisation, and enlisted development in shaping the future Indo-Pacific security environment.
