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Indo-Pacific Studies Center
State of the Indo-Pacific Conference 2026
Power, Partnership, and Regional Futures in the Indo-Pacific
Examining how power, partnerships, and regional agency are being reshaped across the Indo-Pacific amid strategic competition,
economic fragmentation, and technological disruption.
About the conference
The IPSC State of the Indo-Pacific Conference 2026 is IPSC’s flagship annual forum convening scholars, policy professionals, and practitioners to assess evolving strategic, economic, and normative dynamics shaping the Indo-Pacific. Across three days, the programme combines thematic panels, applied policy workshops, and a closed strategic roundtable.
- 9 thematic panels
- 3 applied workshops
- Closed strategic roundtable (Chatham House Rule)
- Opening and closing plenaries
Keynote speakers
IPSC keynote speakers are selected for strategic depth, operational experience, and their capacity to contribute substantively to Track 1.5 dialogue on Indo-Pacific security, diplomacy, and regional order.
Professor Andrea Malji
Professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI APCSS) in Honolulu
Andrea Malji is a Professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (Honolulu). With a PhD in Political Science, she specialises in Indo-Pacific security and geopolitics, with a focus on South Asia and small states. She designs and delivers security education programs for policy and defence practitioners.
Professor Carlyle Thayer
Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales (Canberra)
One of Australia’s foremost strategic analysts on Southeast Asia, civil–military relations, and Indo-Pacific regional security, with decades of policy-relevant scholarship and advisory engagement.
Rear Admiral Sanjay Roye (Retd)
Former Commander, Indian Navy Submarine Fleet
Senior Indian naval strategist with operational command experience beneath the nuclear threshold, offering insight into undersea warfare, maritime deterrence, and India’s role in Indo-Pacific maritime security.
Captain Sarabjeet Singh Parmar (Retd)
Maritime Security and Strategic Affairs Specialist
Seasoned naval officer and analyst specialising in maritime security, naval strategy, and Indo-Pacific defence cooperation, with a focus on India’s evolving maritime doctrine and regional partnerships.
Additional keynote and plenary speakers may be published progressively as confirmations are completed.
Programme
The programme below lists panel and workshop titles with paper titles as provided. Speaker names and affiliations may be published progressively as confirmations are completed.
Day 1 — Strategic Context and Regional Order
Opening framing, great power competition, ASEAN autonomy, and the economics of strategic alignment.
The Indo-Pacific at a Strategic Inflection Point
Opening address and framing session.
Great Power Competition and Regional Order
- From Strategy to Vision: Interpreting Premise and Purpose of Japan’s FOIP
- The United States of America and the Politics of the Indo-Pacific Region
- Rising Tide: Continuity and Changes in India’s Strategic Posture Under Trump 2.0
ASEAN, Strategic Autonomy, and Regionalism
- ASEAN Member States’ Engagement Strategies and Domestic Legitimacy
- Southeast Asia's Discursive Power and Normative Influence in the Xi Jinping Era…
- Assessing the Rise of “Strategic Minilateralism” in the Indo-Pacific…
Trade, Tariffs, and Economic Security in the Indo-Pacific
- Economic and Trade Integration in the Indo-Pacific: Recent Trends and Future Prospects
- How “Liberation Day Tariffs” Are Redrawing the Map of Critical Minerals Trade
- The Indo-Pacific Turn: Reconfiguring Global Economic Power
Key Strategic Takeaways from Day One
Chair-led synthesis session.
Day 2 — Security, Technology, and Strategic Alignment
Maritime security, flashpoints, and applied workshops on technology, infrastructure, and risk.
Maritime Strategy and Security in the Indo-Pacific
- Blue Alliances: India’s Maritime Strategy...
- Indo-Pacific Security under BRI
- Moscow's Maritime Balancing Act: Russia's Indo-Pacific Strategy Between China, India, Vietnam, and North Korea
Security Flashpoints and Strategic Risk
- China’s Military Influence in Cambodia
- Nuclear Redeployment: A Roadmap for Returning Nonstrategic Nuclear Weapons to the Korean Peninsula
- The Impact of AUKUS on Australia's Foreign Policy Autonomy
Geotechnology, Infrastructure, and Strategic Vulnerability
- The Geotechnology Trilemma: Redefining Power and Partnership…
- Digital Chokepoints amid rising US-China rivalry: Undersea Cable Infrastructure and the Emerging Digital Iron Curtain in Southeast Asia
Cyber Narratives, Risk, and Myth-Making
- The Cyberterrorism Myth and Folklore of Indonesian Cybercrime Personalities
- Satellite Technologies and Dark Shipping Detection in the Indo-Pacific Realm
What Is Changing — and What Is Not
Chair-led synthesis session.
Day 3 — Norms, Partnerships, and Regional Futures
Strategic alignments, emerging domains, ideational contestation, and maritime connectivity.
Strategic Futures in the Indo-Pacific
Chatham House Rule · Invitation-only · Not recorded
Strategic Alignments and Regional Futures
- Cooperation and Conflict: How QUAD Can Serve United States Strategic Interests in the Indo-Pacific
- Cross-Strait Relations and the future of Taiwan in Regional stability
- India’s decisive leadership and rapidly evolving power-play of the Indo-Pacific
Technology, Surveillance, and Emerging Security Domains
- Satellite Technologies and Dark Shipping Detection in the Indo-Pacific Realm
- Digital Chokepoints amid rising US-China rivalry: Undersea Cable Infrastructure and the Emerging Digital Iron Curtain in Southeast Asia
- The Cyberterrorism Myth and Folklore of Indonesian Cybercrime Personalities
Norms, Ideology, and Political Order
- THE DECLINE OF LIBERALISM AND DEMOCRACY: A DOUBLE FALL?
- Reweaving the Indo-Pacific Beyond the Geopolitical Straitjacket
- Southeast Asia's Discursive Power and Normative Influence in the Xi Jinping Era...
Maritime Power, Partnerships, and Connectivity
- India’s Blue Economy and the SAGAR Vision: Maritime Strategy Amidst Strategic Rivalry with China
- Redefining partnership in a multipolar Indo-Pacific: the Philippines and the EU at sea
- Pakistan’s Role in East Africa’s Maritime Governance: Policies, Partnerships, and Indo-Pacific Dynamics
Climate, Resources, and Strategic Trade-Offs
- Blue-Green Nexus in the Indo-Pacific: Aligning Critical Minerals Policy with Climate and Biodiversity Goals
- The Nexus of Water, Society, and Governance in the Indo-Pacific...
- Climate Security in the Indo-Pacific: Challenges, Opportunities, and Strategic Pathways
The Indo-Pacific to 2030: Strategic Outlooks
Closing plenary session.
Registration
Dates: 6–8 February 2026
Format: Online · Multi-time-zone
Student access: Free
Ticket revenue supports IPSC scholarships and early-career programmes, including Emerging Scholars and Emerging Leaders.
Key Dates
The State of the Indo-Pacific Conference 2026 will be held on 6-8 February 2026. The event will be hybrid, with opportunities for both in-person and virtual participation. Please refer to the key dates below for submissions, registration, and engagement.
| Milestone | Date | Delegate Registration Opens | Now |
|---|---|
| Final Paper / Presentation Submission | 28 January 2026 |
| Conference Dates | 6-8 February 2026 |
| Post-Conference Publication Submissions Due | 10 March 2026 |
| Recordings & Proceedings Released | Late February 2026 |