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AUKUS is a trilateral defence and security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States which aims to “help sustain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region”. AUKUS partners have been clear that its advanced capabilities Pillar could eventually extend beyond the three core nations. As a Pacific nation with 25,000 kilometers of Pacific coastline and more than $225B in annual two-way merchandise trade with the Indo-Pacific region, Canada has keen strategic interests in the stability of the region. Furthermore, as a close defence partner and one that shares core values, Canada has a vested interest in contributing to the continued success of AUKUS.
As AUKUS continues to build out its Pillar 2 facet of advanced capabilities, shared technology, and increased interoperability between armed forces, Canada could play a strategic role in shoring up defenses and advancing key collaborative initiatives between the nations.
Scott Millar, Assistant Deputy Minister, Horizontal Policy at Canada’s Department of National Defence, joins the Stimson Center on Thursday, March 21 at 4 pm ET to explore what Canada can bring to Pillar 2, and to examine the strategic contributions that Canada is prepared to make to strengthen the AUKUS partnership.
Featured Speaker
Scott Millar, Assistant Deputy Minister, Horizontal Policy at Canada’s Department of National Defence
Mr. Scott Millar joined the Department of National Defence as Assistant Deputy Minister, Horizontal Policy in May 2023. The role expands policy work in strategic priority areas, including procurement reform, national/economic security, and multilateral, multidomain initiatives (i.e. cyber, space, etc). He provides overarching support for the Policy Group’s current mandate and specifically on files pertaining to culture change, provincial/territorial relations, Middle East, Africa and Latin America among others.
Moderator
Cindy Vestergaard, Senior Fellow and Director, Converging Technologies and Global Security program, Stimson Center
Cindy Vestergaard previously directed Stimson’s Nuclear Safeguards program (2016 – 2022) and the Blockchain in Practice program (2018 – 2022) and was a Nonresident fellow for both programs in 2023 when she served as Vice President, Special Projects and External Relations at DataTrails.