Members are free to participate in working groups, seminars/webinars and research symposium/colloquium.
Members are predominantly former and current politicians, military leaders, ambassadors/diplomats, academic and community leaders, NGO leaders. To register, please complete the registration form below. The registration fees will enable us to provide venues and meals during the proceedings.
Working Group Series, APSI Forum
Asia's Powers and Middle East Arms Race: Trends and Non-proliferation Efforts
Date: 28th of January 2021
Venue: Novotel Hotel, 133 The Terrace, Wellington
Facilitators:
Dr Anita Abbott, APSI Forum
MGen (Ret) Gert-Johannes Hagemann, APSI Forum
Sergeant Major (Ret) Anthony Spadaro, APSI Forum
8am-8.15am: Staff Briefing
8.15am-8.30am: Arrival coffee and tea
8.30am- 8.45am: Waiata, National anthem and karakia : Harry Lazarus
8.45am-9am: Opening remarks: Maxwell Abbott, Global Partnership and Development Ltd
9am-10am : The proliferation of WMD and dual-use materials in the Middle East: A European Perspective
Speaker: Dr Ian Anthony, Programme Director, European Security Programme, SIPRI
10am-10.15am: Morning tea break
10.15am-11.15am: Potential application of nuclear deterrence theory to the proliferation of WMD in the Middle East
Speaker: Miles Pomper, Senior Fellow, James Martin Center for Non-Proliferation Studies
11.15am-11.45am: Panel discussion: Asia and the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
Chair: MGen (Ret) Hagemann
11.45am-12.15pm : Panel discussion: China's nuclear approach in Iran
Chair: Dr Anita Abbott
12.15-1pm: Lunch break
1pm-2.30pm: NPT and Non NPT states: India, Pakistan, and Israel
Chair: Sergeant Major (Ret) Anthony Spadaro
Speakers:
Dr. Mansoor Ahmed, Senior Research Fellow at Center for International Strategic Studies, Pakistan
LtGen (Ret) Vinod Bhatia, Director of Centre For Joint Warfare Studies (CENJOWS), India
Representative from Israel
2.30pm: Concluding Remarks
Distinguished participants:
His Excellency Dr Jesus Domingo, Philippine Ambassador to New Zealand, Cook Islands, Fiji, Niue, Samoa &Tonga
His Excellency Mr Grzegorz Kowal, Polish Ambassador
Bill Chen, Representative from Taiwan
​Seminar and Panel Discussion Series, APSI Center of Excellence (COE)
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP): China's role, advantages, and consequences
TBC
Chair:
Dr Anita Abbott, APSI Forum
Date: 23rd February 2021 (TBC)
Venue: Oaks Hotel Wellington, 89 Courtenay Pl, Wellington
8.30am-12.30pm
Speakers:
Prof. Sascha Dov-Bachmann (Australia)
Prof. Dwi-Andreas Santosa (Indonesia)
Representative from Singapore (TBA)
Seminar and Panel discussion series, APSI COE
Balkan Silk Road and Great Power Competition: Geopolitical and Economic Influencer
TBC
Date: 24th of February 2021 (TBC)
Venue: Oaks Hotel Wellington, 89 Courtenay Pl, Wellington
Chair:
Sergeant Major (Ret) Anthony Spadaro
8.30am-12.30pm
Speakers:
Dr Vira Ratsyborinska
Professor Sascha-Dominik Dov Bachmann
TBA
Seminar and Panel Discussion Series, APSI Center of Excellence (COE)
Maritime Security and Competing Interests in the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean
Date: 25th of February 2021
Venue: Oaks Hotel Wellington, 89 Courtenay Pl, Wellington
8.30am-4.30pm
Chair:
MGen (Ret) Gert-Johannes Hagemann, APSI Forum
Speakers:
Dr Andrew Dowse, Director Defence Research and Engagement at Edith Cowan University
Hunter Stires, Fellow at Hattendorf Center for Maritime Historical Research, U.S. Naval War College
Sergeant Major (Ret) Anthony Spadaro, APSI Forum and Center of Excellence
LtGen (Ret) Vinod Bhatia, Former Director of Centre For Joint Warfare Studies (CENJOWS), India
Royal Australian Navy Sea Power Centre (TBA)
Distinguished participants:
Brooke van Velden, Act Party Deputy Leader
Bill Chen, Representative from Taiwan
Working Group, APSI Forum
Arms control and confidence building measures in the Asia-Pacific region.
Date: May, 2021 (Date TBA)
Venue: TBA
For invited guests only
Chair:
Sergeant Major (Ret) Anthony Spadaro, APSI Forum
APSI Working Group Series, APSI Forum
Non-proliferation and alternative security architecture
Date: TBA
Venue: TBA
Seminar and Panel Discussions, APSI COE
NATO and EU Strategic Cooperation and Implication for Partners in Asia-Pacific
Date: 1st of April 2021
Venue: TBA
Facilitators:
Dr Anita Abbott
MGen (Ret) Gert-Johannes Hagemann
Major Sergeant (Re) Anthony Spadaro
Speakers:
Dr Vira Raysiborynska
Professor Sascha Dov-Bachmann
TBA
Seminar and Panel discussions, APSI COE
Discussions on Women and Security issues in the Asia-Pacific region
Date: July 2021 (Date TBA)
Venue: TBA
Free for members
Membership Enquiry: publicdiplomacy@apsisummit.com
Research Symposium, APSI COE
Crisis Management and Emergency Preparedness
Date: TBA
Venue: TBA
Keynote Speakers:
Dr Barnaby Pace
His Excellency Dr Jesus Domingo
Seminar, APSI COE
Cultural Diplomacy and Cooperation with International Organisations
Date: TBA
Venue: TBA
Membership Enquiry: publicdiplomacy@apsisummit.com
Working Group Series, APSI Forum
Nuclear Security Challenges and Strategic Arms Reduction in the Asia-Pacific region
Date: November 5, 2020
Venue: Novotel Hotel, 133 The Terrace, Wellington Central, Wellington
Facilitator: Dr Anita Abbott, APSI Forum
8am-8.15am: Staff Briefing
8.15am-8.30am: Arrival coffee and tea
8.30am- 8.45am: Waiata, National anthem and karakia
8.45am-9am: Opening remarks
9am-10am
Speaker: Guy Roberts, Former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, Biological Defense Programs
10am-10.15am: Morning tea break
10.15am-11.15am: Emerging military technologies and their potential future impact on the strategic balance in the Asia-Pacific region
Speaker: James Faist, Director of Defense Research and Engineering for Advanced Capabilities, Office of the US Secretary of Defense
11.15am-11.30am: Annual meeting (APSI committee and advisory board ONLY)
11.30am-12.30 pm: Lunch break
12.30-1pm: Nuclear risks and opportunities: A global round-up
Speaker: Dr James Acton, co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
1pm-1.30 pm: Commentaries
Northeast Asian democracies and potential proliferation triggers
Speakers: Dr Anita Abbott and Sergeant Major (Ret) Anthony A. Spadaro, APSI Forum
1.30pm-2.30 pm: Is India's Policy on Use of Nuclear Weapons Credible?
Speaker: Major General Ravi Arora, CEO and Chief Editor 'Indian Military Review'
2.30pm-3.30pm: China and India-Pakistan nuclear arsenals
2.30pm-3pm: Arms Race Instability in South Asia: Trends and Trajectories
Speaker: Dr Mansoor Ahmed, Senior Research Fellow at Center for International Strategic Studies, Pakistan
3pm-3.30pm: China-Pakistan Nuclear Relations
Speaker: Dr Priyanka Singh, Associate Fellow, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), India
3.30pm-4pm: Concluding Remarks
Distinguished guests:
His Excellency Dr Jesus Domingo, Philippine Ambassador to New Zealand, Cook Islands, Fiji, Niue, Samoa &Tonga
Bill Chen, Representative from Taiwan
Chris Penk, National MP
James McDowall, MP, ACT, party spokesperson for Foreign Affairs
APSI Forum Working Group Series
29-30 July, Queenstown, New Zealand
COPTHORNE HOTEL AND RESORT QUEENSTOWN LAKEVIEW
88 Frankton Road, Queenstown
Defence Against Biological Agents
Addressing military, political, scientific, and legal challenges in biological defence
July 29
12.30pm-12.40pm: National Anthem and Karakia
12.40pm-1pm: Welcoming address: Mike Theelen, Chief Executive, Queenstown Lakes District council
1pm-1.30pm: Strategic Foresight Analysis: Potential biological weapons threats
Facilitator: Dr Anita Abbott, Committee Chair, APSI Forum
1.30pm-2.30pm: Biological weapons: Past, present, and future
Speaker: Dr Seth Carus, Emeritus Distinguished Professor of National Security Policy at the Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction
Presentation by SKYPE
2.30pm-2.45pm: Afternoon tea break
2.45pm-3.45pm: Biological warfare and the future of the Law of Armed Conflict
Speaker: Prof. Sascha Dov Bachmann, Professor in Law at Canberra Law School
Presentation by SKYPE
3.45pm-4.15pm: Bio-defence alliance
Speaker:
His Excellency Mr. Zbigniew Gniatkowski, Ambassador, Embassy of the Republic of Poland
(Polish perspective)
4.15pm-4.45pm: Foreign Affairs and Defence Challenges
Speaker: Simon O'Connor, Chair of the Foreign Affairs, Defence, and Trade committee
4.45pm-5pm: Closing Remarks: Brett Murphy
7pm: Dinner at Millennium Hotel
July 30
8.30am-9am: Biodefense: Trends and Challenges
Speaker: Major General Gert-Johannes Hagemann, Deputy Commander of Headquarters. Rapid Reaction Corps (HQ RRC-FR) in Lille, France
Live webinar/Skype
9am-10am: Foreign policy and biochemical terrorism
Speaker: Tracy Walder, Author, former CIA officer and FBI special agent, and worked at the Agency's Counterterrorism Center Weapons of Mass Destruction Group
10am-10.30am: Morning tea break
10.30am-11.30pm: Measures for controlling the threat from biological weapons
Speaker: Hon. Andrew C. Weber, Former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs; Senior Fellow at the Council on Strategic Risks.
Presentation by SKYPE
11.30am-12.30pm: China's Biological Warfare Programme: An Integrative Study With Special Reference to Biological Weapons Capabilities
Contributor: Dr Dany Shoham, Biological Weapons expert, Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Visiting Fellow at IDSA New Delhi
12.30pm-1.30pm: Lunch
1.30pm-3pm: Risk Management and Emergency Preparedness
Speakers:
Gillian Somerville, Human Factors Engineer, GES consulting
Dr. Barnaby Pace, Human Factors Psychologist
3pm-3.10pm: Afternoon tea break
3.10pm-4.10pm: National security threat perception embedded in biological threat
Speaker: His Excellency Dr Itzhak Gerberg, Ambassador, Embassy of Israel in New Zealand
4.10pm-4.40pm: Strategic Communication
The role of media in the event of a bioterrorist act
Speaker: Brett Murphy, Asia-Pacific Security Innovation Forum
4.40pm-4.50pm: Closing Remarks: Dr Anita Abbott