18-19 November 2021, Ha Noi, Viet Nam
the 13th South China Sea International Conference
LOOKING BACK to A BRIGHTER FUTURE
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Programme

  • 8.30am - 8.50am (GMT+7)

OPENING

- Dr. Pham Lan Dung, Acting President of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam
- H.E. Mr Pham Quang Hieu, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam

  • 8.50am - 9.45am (GMT+7)

Keynote Session: Constructing a Cooperative and Connected Indo-Pacific

- H.E. Mr. Kevin Rudd, Former Prime Minister of Australia, President and CEO of the Asia Society
- H.E. Dr. R.M. Marty M. Natalegawa, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia
- H.E. Ms. Amanda Milling, Minister for Asia, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom

    Day 1: Looking back

    • 9.45am - 11.15am (GMT+7)

    Session 1: The South China Sea in a shifting global landscape

    This session will look back at developments in the South China Sea over the past year(s) to further understand why various stakeholders act the ways they do? Why the more interest there is on peace, stability and order in the sea, the greater erosion of trust there seems to be? Why common interests have not led to greater, more effective cooperation and lessen tensions?

    Moderator:
    H.E. Amb. Giorgio Aliberti, Head of European Union Delegation in Vietnam

    Speakers:
    - Mr. Derek Grossman, Senior Defense Analyst, RAND Corporation, US
    - Dr. Vannarith Chheang, President of the Asian Vision Institute, Cambodia
    - Dr. Ding Duo, Associate Research Fellow of National Institute for South China Sea Studies, Deputy Director of Research Center for Oceans Law and Policy, China
    - Vice Admiral Yoji Koda (Retd), Former Commander in Chief, Japan Self Defence Fleet (JSDF), Japan
    - Prof. Stephen R. Nagy, Senior Associate Professor, Department of Politics and International Studies, International Christian University (ICU), Tokyo and Senior Fellow, MacDonald Laurier Institute, Canada

    • 11.15am - 12.45pm (GMT+7)

    Session 2: Thirty years after the Cold War: Is another brewing and How to prevent one from breaking out into conflicts

    This session would not delve into the conceptual debate on what a cold war is and is not. Rather, the session would look back at the lessons learnt among both the major and minor powers of the last cold war to see what can be done to establish decent code of conduct among all, avoiding miscalculations and manage incidence so that conflicts could be avoided at all costs. The roles of the major powers, middle powers, autonomy and alliances, multilateral organisations and strategic communications etc. would be revisited.

    Moderator:
    H.E. Amb. Elsbeth Akkerman, Embassy of the Netherlands in Vietnam

    Speakers:
    - Dr.  Zack Cooper,  Senior  Fellow,  American  Enterprise  Institute
    - H.E. Amb.  Bilahari  Kausikan,  Former Permanent Secretary  of the  Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore 
    - Dr.  Anna  Kireeva,  Associate Professor,  Department of Asian and  African Studies, Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) 
    - Dr.  Shuxian Luo,  Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, The Brookings Institution
      - Dr.  Sang  Hyun  Lee,  President, The  Sejong  Institute, Korea

    • 2.00pm - 3.30pm (GMT+7)

    Session 3: Cementing the legal order in the South China Sea: Assessment of the past 5 years

    It is widely recognized that UNCLOS sets out the legal framework within which all activities in the oceans and seas must be carried out. The 2016 South China Sea Arbitration Award, a decision of an international judicial body, provides a reference point for interpreting and applying relevant UNCLOS provisions, aside from its direct implications on parties to the dispute.
    Session 3 will examine how legal order has been manifested in the South China Sea over the past 5 years. The discussion includes an analysis on (i) where state practices have developed to either deviate from or endorse the constitutional role of UNCLOS and (ii) how the legal order at sea would continue to evolve.

    Moderator:
    H.E. Amb. Robyn Mudie, Embassy of Australia in Viet Nam

    Speakers:
    - Prof.  Jay  Batongbacal, University of the Philippines, the Philippines 
    - Dr.  Lin Ting-hui,  Deputy General Secretary of Taiwanese Society of International Law, Chinese Taipei 
    - Prof.  Nishimoto  Kentaro,  Tohoku University, Japan  
    - Dr.  Yan  Yan, Director of the Research Center of Oceans Law and Policy in the National Institute for South China Sea Studies (NISCSS),  China
    - Mr. Andrew Murdoch,  Legal  Director, the UK  Foreign  and  Commonwealth  Office,  United  Kingdom 

    Discussants:
    - Dr. Joanna Mossop, Associate Dean (Research), Law Faculty at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

    • 3.45pm - 5.15 pm (GMT+7)

    Session 4: Be fair to the facts: History and the South China Sea

    History is important in any territorial disputes, but is oftentimes interpreted in different ways to suit different interests. This session shall revisit the history of the South China Sea with the view to exploring new research findings and clarifying certain facts, especially during the turbulent times after the Second World War and during the Cold war. Looking back on the Treaty of San Francisco at its 70th anniversary, for example, could be useful to understand the SCS’s history at a critical moment.

    Moderator:
    Dr. Erik Solheim, Former Executive Director of UN Environment Programme and former Minister of Environment and International Development, Norway

    Speakers:
    - Mr. Carl Zha, Independent Researcher, China
    - Dr. Bill Hayton, Senior Expert, Asia-Pacific Program, Chatham House, UK
    - Prof. Monique Chemillier-Gendreau, Emeritus Professor, Paris Diderot University, France
    - Dr. Vu Hai Dang, Senior Research Fellow, Centre of International Law, National University of Singapore (CIL)  

    • 5.30pm - 6.00pm (GMT+7)

    Keynote Session: Constructing a Cooperative and Connected Indo-Pacific

    - H.E. Mr. Pawel Herczynski, EU’s Managing Director for Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) and Crisis Response

      Day 2: Towards a brighter future

      • 8.30am - 9.00am (GMT+7)

      Keynote Session: Constructing a Cooperative and Connected Indo-Pacific

      H.E. Amb. Sujan Chinoy, Former Ambassador of India to Japan, Director General of Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi

      • 9.00am - 10.30am (GMT+7)

      Session 5: ASEAN and the QUAD in the regional architecture

      This session would look into the future of the regional security architecture to analyze how ASEAN and the emerging QUAD would compete or complement one another. The purpose of the discussion is to find out how ASEAN could and should strengthen its Centrality amid emerging issues affecting Southeast Asia’s security and stability, both due to traditional and non-traditional threats, as well as new emerging arrangements to deal with such threats.

      Moderator:
      H.E. Amb. Pham Quang Vinh, Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam

      Speakers:
      - H.E. Amb. Igor Driesmans, Head of European Union Mission to ASEAN
      - Dr. Rizal Sukma, Senior Fellow, Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Jakarta, Indonesia
      - Prof. Carl Thayer, Emeritus Professor at The University of New South Wales and Director of Thayer Consultancy, Australia
      - Prof. Harsh Pant, Director, Studies and Head of the Strategic Studies Programme at Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, India

      • 10.45am - 12.15pm (GMT+7)

      Session 6: Disrupted supply chains: how to ensure resilient sea lanes amid Covid-19

      Supply chain disruptions threaten worldwide economic recovery efforts. In the Indo-Pacific, supply chain resilience depends greatly on stable, secure and uninterrupted sea-lanes of communication. This session will explore how factors such as infrastructure connectivity, port security cooperation, etc., might contribute to regional seaborn supply chain resilience, identify potential red flags in the management of maritime supply chain operations, and discuss ways to enhance the safety and stability of sea based logistical networks so as to ensure the Indo-Pacific region remain on a path to steady and sustainable growth in pandemic-troubled times.

      Moderator:
      H.E. Amb. Jaya Ratnam, Embassy of Singapore in Vietnam

      Speakers:
      - Ms. Dhvani Zaveri, Research Analyst, DRIP Capital
      - Dr. Nguyễn Quốc Trường, Head, Service Sector Development Strategy Department, Institute of Development Strategy, Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment & Mr. Trần Đức Nghĩa, Director General, Delta International Co., Ltd.
      - Dr. Michele Acciaro, Associate Professor of Maritime Logistics and Director, Hapag-Lloyd Center for Shipping and Global Logistics, Kühne Logistics University
      - Dr. Alejandro T. Reyes, Director of Knowledge Dissemination, Asia Global Institute, The University of Hong Kong
      Discussant:
      - Ms. Shihoko Goto, Acting Director, Asia Program, The Wilson Center

      • 2.00pm - 3.30pm (GMT+7)

      Session 7: Promoting science diplomacy for common oceanic benefits

      Scientific research has long been identified as an area of common interest and most ready for cooperation to promote confidence as well as for the immediate benefit of the coastal states and beyond. This session would explore recent progress in science diplomacy and maritime cooperation, and the new opportunity brought out by rapid science and technological advancement to address environmental, humanity and economic development challenges, as well as non-traditional maritime threats.

      Moderator:
      Mr. Marcus Winsley, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of the United Kingdom in Vietnam

      Speakers:
      - Dr. Nguyen Chu Hoi, Retired Chair, Vietnam Association for Maritime Environment & Nature
      - Dr. Allen Chen, Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Chinese Taipei
      - Dr. Anastasia Telesetsky, Natural Resources Management & Environmental Sciences, Cal Poly
      - Dr. Sophie Boisseau du Rocher, Center for Asian Studies, French Institute of International Relations

      • 3.45pm - 5.15pm (Hanoi Time, GMT+7)

      Session 8: Transparency through Tracking Technologies

      The past few years saw rapid advancement and popularization of sophisticated tracking and remote sensing technologies, opening new frontiers in maritime domain and situational awareness, particularly in the South China Sea. The unprecedented level of transparency that technology brought clearly had huge impact on public understanding and opinion, on accountability of involved stakeholders both at policy level and those operating “on the ground”. This session will discuss how the new information could and should be wisely utilized to avoid misinformation and disinformation.

      Moderator:
      Dr. Nguyen Hung Son, Vice President of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam

      Speakers:
      - Mr. Gregory B. Poling, Director, Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI), Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), USA
      - Captain Shichen Tian (Retd), Founder and President, Director of Center for International Law of Military Operations, Global Governance Institution (GGI), China
      - Mr. Nguyen The Phuong, Research Fellow, South China Sea Chronicle Initiative (SCSCI), Vietnam
      - Captain Martin A. Sebastian (Retd), Former Senior Fellow/Centre Head, Centre for Maritime Security and Diplomacy, Maritime Institute of Malaysia (MIMA), Malaysia

      • 5.15pm - 5.30pm (Hanoi Time, GMT+7)

      Closing Remarks

      Moderators and Speakers

      Quotes

      The 13th Conference

        EU Ambassador Giorgio Aliberti joined as the moderator for the 1st session on “The South China Sea in a shifting landscape", reflecting developments in the South China Sea over the past years and great interests in peace, stability and order in the sea.

          Great discussions at 13th South China Sea Int. Conference #SCSC13. The pandemic is an opportunity for ASEAN economies as companies diversify their sourcing. A recurring theme: how to rebuild a more sustainable global trade system

            Honored to have chaired this morning a great panel at #SCSC13 Diplomatic Academy of #Vietnam on #SouthChinaSea with @DerekJGrossman @chheangcam @DingDuo1 @nagystephen1 and V.Adm. Hoda - Diverging views but civilized tones #opendialogue

              Date 2 #SCSC13 - Session 5: ASEAN and emerging mini-lateral groupings in the evolving regional architecture With prominent speakers: Amb. Igor Driesman, Dr. Rizal Sukma, Prof. Carl Thayer

                We're pleased to again partner with the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam for this year’s South China Sea Conference #SCSC13, where NZ’s @JoannaMossop (Associate Prof and Law of the Sea expert from @WellingtonUni ) will be speaking.

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