Defense & Security
Putin needs to believe he can’t win
The United States faces a dual imperative: responding to immediate military challenges while managing the nontraditional risks that are redefining global security. The ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza and rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific, from Taiwan to the South China Sea, underscore traditional threats and reflect the enduring relevance of military power. Yet, transnational challenges like climate change, food insecurity, and the disruptive potential of artificial intelligence and disinformation are no longer peripheral concerns but central to the strategic environment. Addressing these complex threats requires rethinking American defense priorities and developing innovative, cross-cutting solutions to navigate this evolving security landscape.
Brookings hosted a series of conversations that explored big ideas and advanced provocative potential solutions to the world’s wide-ranging security challenges. This year’s forum featured keynote discussions with White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director Arati Prabhakar and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph F. Dunford and two panels of Brookings experts.
Online viewers submitted questions via e-mail to [email protected] and via Twitter @BrookingsFP using #KnightForum.
Agenda
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October 2
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Opening remarks
1:00 pm - 1:05 pm
Michael E. O’Hanlon Director of Research - Foreign Policy, Director - Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology, Co-Director - Africa Security Initiative, Senior Fellow - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology, Philip H. Knight Chair in Defense and Strategy @MichaelEOHanlon -
Keynote: US innovation
1:05 pm - 1:45 pm
Arati Prabhakar Director - White House Office of Science and Technology PolicyModerator
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Panel 1: Nontraditional global security challenges
1:45 pm - 2:35 pm
Jeffrey Feltman John C. Whitehead Visiting Fellow in International Diplomacy - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology -
Coffee break
2:35 pm - 2:50 pm
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Panel 2: Traditional global security challenges
2:50 pm - 3:40 pm
Colin Kahl Sydney Stein, Jr. Scholar - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology @ColinKahl
Lynn Kuok Lee Kuan Yew Chair in Southeast Asia Studies, Fellow - Foreign Policy, Center for Asia Policy Studies @LynnKuok
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Keynote: Peer threats
3:40 pm - 4:20 pm
General Joseph F. Dunford Former Chairman - Joint Chiefs of Staff, Former Commandant - U.S. Marine CorpsModerator
Michael E. O’Hanlon Director of Research - Foreign Policy, Director - Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology, Co-Director - Africa Security Initiative, Senior Fellow - Foreign Policy, Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology, Philip H. Knight Chair in Defense and Strategy @MichaelEOHanlon
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