Energy Shots: Epic Fury and Federal Leasing
June 12, 2026 • 9:30 – 10:00 am EDT
Border Security and Defense Cooperation in North America: Addressing Emerging Challenges
June 17, 2026 • 9:00 am – 2:30 pm EDT
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The United States and Canada share the longest international land border in the world—nearly 5,500 miles across forests, waterways, and Arctic terrain. This border is also the interface for one of the world’s most integrated economic relationships, where more than $900 billion in annual trade occurs, supported by deeply interconnected supply chains across North America. The openness of the border has been central to regional prosperity and is reinforced by the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), which strengthens economic integration across the continent.
At the same time, evolving security challenges are placing new pressure on border governance. Transnational criminal organizations exploit gaps in jurisdiction and coordination to move narcotics and illegal firearms; other groups also move a range of contraband goods. Beyond criminal activity, North America’s strategic environment is also shifting. Growing geopolitical competition and the increasing strategic importance of the Arctic have heightened the need for stronger continental defense cooperation. The modernization of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and improved surveillance of northern approaches have therefore become key priorities for policymakers in Washington and Ottawa.
Against this backdrop, the Americas Program is convening a conference to discuss emerging challenges shaping the U.S.-Canada defense and security relationship.
The agenda will be updated regularly in the coming days. Please check back to view the latest agenda, including livestreamed sessions.
Conference Agenda
Attendee Registration Begins
9:00 am
Keynote: U.S.-Canada Security Cooperation
9:30 am
Keynote speakers forthcoming
Coffee Break
10:30 am
Morning Breakout Panels
10:45 am
"U.S-Canada Cooperation to Counter Transnational Organized Crime"
Panelists:
Dr. Vanda Felbab-Brown, Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution
Calvin Chrustie, Senior Partner, Critical Risk Team
Ammon Blair, Senior Fellow, Texas Public Policy Foundation
Moderator:
Christopher Hernandez-Roy, Acting Director and Senior Fellow, Americas Program
"NORAD Modernization and Continental Defense"
Panelists:
Christopher Coates, Director of Foreign Policy, National Defence and National Security, The Macdonald-Laurier Institute
Melissa Dalton, Senior Adviser (Non-resident), Defense Budget Analysis and Aerospace Security Project
Dr. Tom Karako, Director, Missile Defense Project and Senior Fellow, Defense and Security Department
Moderator:
Henry Ziemer, Fellow, Americas Program
Luncheon
12:15 pm
Afternoon Breakout Panels
1:00 pm
"Cooperation to Deter and Prevent Cross-Border Smuggling"
Panelists:
Karen Restoule, Senior Fellow and Director of Indigenous Affairs, Macdonald–Laurier Institute
Roy Boyd, Chair, Operation Lone Star Task Force and Sheriff of Goliad County, Texas
Moderator:
Jamie Tronnes, Executive Director, Center for North American Prosperity and Security
"Arctic Security and Strategic Competition"
Panelists:
Sara Cohen, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Canada to the United States
Rebecca Pincus, Senior Fellow, Transatlantic Security, The German Marshall Fund of the United States
Captain Luc Tremblay, Naval Attaché and Assistant Defence Attaché, Embassy of Canada to the United States
William "Bill" Muntean III, Senior Associate, CSIS Americas Program
Moderator:
Henry Ziemer, Fellow, Americas Program
Conference Adjourns
2:30 pm
This event is made possible through partnership with the Center for North American Prosperity and Security.
