DIMDEX 2018

DIMDEX 2018: “Building Capabilities in Challenging Environments Through Visionary International Military Cooperation and Defence Engagement” 

13 March 2018

The momentous ten-year anniversary of DIMDEX was marked by a distinct MENC edition that offered participating delegates the opportunity to jointly evaluate the importance of long-term strategic planning and the provision of new military and defence methods across the Arabian Gulf, the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea.
Panellist sessions tackled issues relating to regional and international cases, common experiences in the defence and maritime sector, and an overview of military and non-military perspectives on the future of military collaboration and communication.

Notable panel speakers included:

• Vice Admiral Valter Girardelli, Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy, spoke on ‘Granting Maritime Security and Access to the Global Maritime Community through Naval Partnership, Cooperation and Interoperability’.
• Vice Admiral John C. Aquilino, Commander U.S. Naval Forces Central Command U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces, led a panel on ‘Building Enduring Partnerships to Provide Maritime Security’.
• Vice Admiral Girish Luthra, Commander-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, discussed ‘Building Capabilities in Challenging Environments through Visionary International Military Cooperation and Defence Engagement’.
• Rear Admiral Didier Piaton, Commander of French Joint Forces in the Indian Ocean, discussed ‘Building Capacities in Challenging Environments through International Military Cooperation’.
• Rear Admiral Ryo Sakai, Director General of Operations and Plans Department, spoke on ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific Ocean’.
• Rear Admiral Jaimie C. F. Hatcher, Commander Joint Task Force 633, discussed ‘Building Capabilities in Challenging Environments through Visionary International Military Cooperation and Defence Engagement’.
• Rear Admiral (LH) Yavuz Kilic, Head of Plans and Policy Department, led a panel on ‘Maritime Defence, Planning and Methods of Building Military and Defence Capabilities’.
• Staff Brigadier (SEA) Tariq Khalid Al-Obaidi, Head of International Military Cooperation Authority, thematised ‘Achieving Deterrence through Soft Power and Effective, Intelligent Influence’.
• Dr Andrew Dorman, Professor of International Security Defence Studies Department at King’s College London, held a talk on ‘International Military Cooperation and Defence Engagement – a Perspective from Academia’.