Press Briefing: Previewing the NATO Summit
July 1, 2026 • 10:00 – 11:00 am EDT
Sixteenth Annual South China Sea Conference
July 7, 2026 • 9:00 am – 4:00 pm EDT
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The CSIS Southeast Asia Program and Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative are pleased to present the Sixteenth Annual CSIS South China Sea Conference. This full-day conference will feature keynote addresses and in-depth panel discussions on recent developments in disputed waters and the importance of the 10-year anniversary of the landmark South China Sea arbitration. Panels will address the state of play, legal developments and dispute management, evolving alliance networks, and the role of global stakeholders.
Event Agenda
8:30 am
Check-In and Coffee
Pre-Recorded Morning Keynote
9:00 am
Rep. Eugene Vindman (D-Virginia)
9:30 am
Coffee Break
Panel 1: State of Play in the South China Sea
9:45 am
Harrison Prétat, Deputy Director and Fellow, Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, CSIS
Natalie Sambhi, Founder and Executive Director, Verve Research
Henrietta Levin, Senior Fellow, Freeman Chair in China Studies, CSIS
Tu Lai, Research Fellow, East Sea Institute, Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam
10:45 am
Break
Panel 2: Ten Years After the Arbitration
10:55 am
Jay Batongbacal, Director, Institute for Maritime and Law of the Sea, University of the Philippines
Robert Harris, Assistant Legal Adviser for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, United States Department of State
Chi-Ting Tsai, Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, National Taiwan University
Diem Huong Ho, Associate, Foley Hoag LLP
11:55 am
Lunch Break
Lunch Keynote
12:15 pm
Michael G. DeSombre, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Moderated by Gregory Poling, Senior Fellow & Director, Southeast Asia Program and Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative
1:15 pm
Break
Panel 3: Evolving Security Networks
1:30 pm
Yuki Tatsumi, Senior Director, Institute for Indo-Pacific Security
Charmaine Misalucha-Willoughby, Associate Professor, Department of International Studies, De La Salle University
Bec Strating, Director, La Trobe Centre for Global Security and Professor of International Relations, La Trobe University
Patrick M. Cronin, Asia-Pacific Security Chair, Hudson Institute
2:30 pm
Break
Panel 4: The Role of Outside Parties
2:40 pm
Tanvi Madan, Senior Fellow, Center for Asia Policy Studies, Brookings Institution
Alessio Patalano, Professor of War and Strategy in East Asia, King’s College London
Kathryn Paik, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Australia Chair, CSIS
Max Bergmann, Director, Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program and Stuart Center
3:40 pm
Closing Remarks and End
This event is made possible by support from the FESS Foundation, the Embassy of Australia, the Embassy of Japan, the Embassy of New Zealand, and the Embassy of the Philippines.
Contact Information
- Lauren Mai
- Program Manager and Research Associate, Southeast Asia Program
- [email protected]
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Director and Senior Fellow, Southeast Asia Program and Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative
