Canada
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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
U.K.-led Operation Highmast departs for Indo-Pacific deployment with Allies and Partners
FORUM Staff The United Kingdom’s Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales departed Portsmouth Naval Base in late April 2025 to lead a multilateral deployment to the Indo-Pacific. The eight-month deployment of the U.K.’s Carrier Strike Group 2025, called Operation Highmast, will be joined by vessels and/or personnel from 13 nations, including Australia, France, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand,…
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Partnerships
Project Convergence ‘critical proving ground’ for emerging military capabilities
FORUM Staff Allied and Partner forces converged in the unforgiving terrain of the American West recently to test drones, robotic vehicles, and next-generation command and control (NGC2) as part of the United States Army’s “premier modernization experiment.” Project Convergence Capstone 5 (PC-C5), which runs from March through April 2025 at the U.S. Army’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California,…
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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
G7 condemns China’s coercion, boosts Free and Open Indo-Pacific
FORUM Staff The foreign affairs chiefs of the Group of Seven leading industrial nations said they are committed to upholding a Free and Open Indo-Pacific that is prosperous and secure and based on “sovereignty, territorial integrity, peaceful resolution of disputes, fundamental freedoms and human rights.” A joint statement in mid-March 2025 from the G7 nations of Canada, France, Germany, Italy,…
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Partnerships
Canada-Philippines defense accord to boost Free and Open Indo-Pacific
The Associated Press Canada and the Philippines have concluded talks for a key defense pact that will enable their forces to hold joint drills and boost engagements, Manila’s National Defense Department said in March 2025. Canada and other Western nations are reinforcing their military presence in the region to promote a Free and Open Indo-Pacific and expand trade and investment.…
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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
Manila advances multilateral cooperation for regional, global security
FORUM Staff The Philippines is rapidly expanding international defense partnerships amid escalating tensions in the South China Sea. The People’s Republic of China (PRC) illegally claims most of the economically vital and environmentally significant waterway. Beijing has become increasingly aggressive inside Manila’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) — and other nations’ maritime territory — despite an international tribunal’s nearly decade-old ruling…
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Free and Open Indo-Pacific/FOIP
Canada’s Arctic strategy designed to counter Chinese, Russian threats
Sentry Staff Canada’s new Arctic foreign policy aims to counter emerging threats from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Russia by strengthening international partnerships and increasing the nation’s military presence. Unveiled in December 2024, the strategy calls for Canada to open new consulates in Anchorage, Alaska, and Nuuk, Greenland, and to appoint an Arctic ambassador. The country will also…
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Global Commons
Nations collaborate on global AI guidelines
Sentry Staff Ensuring safe, effective and fair deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) platforms requires the United States and its Allies and Partners, and industry to develop consistent guidelines, leaders said at a conference on international AI policy. “We must craft frameworks that maximize innovation while ensuring the trustworthy, secure and ethical use of AI. This balance is the cornerstone of…
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Partnerships
Multilateral La Perouse 25 exercise focuses on key maritime passages
FORUM Staff Protecting choke points that link the Indian Ocean to the Java Sea, South China Sea and Pacific Ocean was the mission of the La Perouse 25 exercise. Nine Indo-Pacific navies participated in the biennial exercise in January, the fifth and largest iteration. About one-third of the world’s commercial shipping traverses the Lombok, Malacca and Sunda straits, and the…
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Conflicts - Tensions
North Korea-Russia military ties require coordinated response to maintain Indo-Pacific stability
U.S. Army 8th Theater Sustainment Command, National Security Law Team North Korea’s increasing military support for Russia, including arms shipments and deployment of 10,000 troops for Moscow’s illegal war against Ukraine, raises significant strategic and legal concerns for the Indo-Pacific. It signals a deepening alliance between two authoritarian regimes seeking to counter the influence of the United States and its…
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Northeast Asia
Japanese, U.S. forces enhance readiness, interoperability during Keen Sword 25
FORUM Staff The Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) and the United States military conducted exercise Keen Sword 25 from October 23 to November 1, 2024, at sites across Japan. Personnel from the Australian Defence Force and Canadian Armed Forces also participated. The biennial, joint field-training exercise, first held in 1986, increases readiness and interoperability while strengthening the ironclad Japan-U.S. alliance. The…
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