IPSC State of the Indo-Pacific Conference 2025

Sovereignty and Strategy: Reimagining Cooperation Beyond Hegemony

9–10 October 2025 | Hybrid Format (Location TBC)

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IPSC State of the Indo-Pacific Conference 2025

Theme: Sovereignty and Strategy: Reimagining Cooperation Beyond Hegemony

9–10 October 2025
Hybrid Format (Location TBC)

About the Conference

In an era marked by geopolitical fragmentation, protectionist resurgence, and great power rivalry, the Indo-Pacific stands at a strategic inflection point. With the return of Trump-era tariffs and an increasingly transactional U.S. posture, the region faces a dual challenge: responding to China’s long-term expansionism and navigating the uncertainty of U.S. commitment to multilateral order.

This year’s conference is grounded in a pivotal question:
Can Indo-Pacific actors forge new frameworks of cooperation that safeguard sovereignty and regional stability — independent of external hegemony?

Agenda Anchoring & Structure

Key Strategic Drivers

  • Geopolitical fragmentation from competing visions and shifting alliances
  • Return of transactional U.S. policy, challenging multilateral norms
  • China’s long-term expansionism, through military, economic, and diplomatic assertiveness

Conference Objectives

  • Rethink hegemony and external dependency
  • Reimagine regional cooperation and sovereignty
  • Affirm strategic autonomy for Indo-Pacific states
  • Renew or redesign multilateral frameworks for future resilience

Program Design: From Strategy to Solutions

The conference is structured across two focused days:

Day 1 — Strategic Crossroads: Frames the problem space by examining power shifts, hegemonic tensions, and regional dilemmas.

Day 2 — Forging Frameworks: Focuses on solution pathways — institutional innovation, sovereign leadership, and new cooperative mechanisms.

This structure follows a deliberate arc: Diagnosis → Deliberation → Direction

Day 1: Strategic Crossroads

Welcome by Dr. Hugh Tuckfield
Keynote: “The Indo-Pacific at an Inflection Point: Power Shifts and Strategic Futures”
Topics: Trump-era policy revival, strategic ambiguity, multilateral decline, impact on smaller and middle powers.
Topics: South China Sea, Taiwan Strait, economic coercion, technological decoupling.
Theme: Between Giants: Sovereignty, Security, and Self-Reliance in the Indo-Pacific
In conversation with a regional defense or foreign affairs minister.
  • Session A: QUAD & AUKUS Plus
  • Session B: Supply Chain Sovereignty
  • Session C: Maritime Domain Awareness
Topics: Strategic autonomy, economic corridors, digital cooperation.

Day 2: Forging New Frameworks

Theme: “Leadership Without Hegemony: Pathways to Regional Resilience”
Topics: Regional institutions, alternative frameworks, minilateralism.
  • Track 1: Youth and Emerging Leaders
  • Track 2: Tech and Cyber Governance
  • Track 3: Climate-Security Nexus
Topic: Private Sector Power: How Business is Shaping the Future of the Region.
Topics: Media, academic discourse, diaspora diplomacy, identity construction.
Charting the Way Forward: Regional Cooperation Without Dependency.
Launch: IPSC 2025 State of the Indo-Pacific Report.

Please complete the form below to submit your Roundtable proposal for the 2025 IPSC State of the Indo-Pacific Conference.