The U.S. is facing obstacles with both funding and the reliability of the domestic shipbuilding industry as the U.S. Navy looks to expand its fleet of battle-force ships and remain competitive with China, which is poised to overtake the Navy in terms of maritime might. U.S. The panel will discuss the Navy’s plan for a fleet buildup, as well as evaluate the issues inside the U.S. shipbuilding industry and how the U.S. might rely on allies, such as Japan and South Korea, for ship deliveries. Additionally, recent reports suggest the Navy has been behind schedule in modernization and maintenance efforts, thereby hampering the transport of expeditionary Marines.

Growing technological advancements, such as AI, machine learning and anti-access/area-denial capabilities, are creating dilemmas for the U.S. military in executing logistics operations, particularly in the Indo-Pacific theater. The Pentagon needs to be equipped for executing long-range precision strikes, penetrating anti-access/area-denial capabilities and ensuring resilient logistics. To meet these challenges, there’s now increased pressure from the Defense Innovation Board and President Donald Trump’s administration to overhaul the DOD’s business practices to fuel innovation, test new technologies and implement them with fewer bureaucratic hurdles. ​

The undersea domain is increasingly contested, where vital communication and energy lines running along the ocean floor play a critical role in national security and U.S. adversaries continue to bolster their own submarine forces. The panel will discuss the resiliency of the U.S. military and its allies to undersea threats, such as cable sabotage and seabed mines, as well as how the U.S. is modernizing undersea capabilities and training to meet threats in the Indo-Pacific.​

Propaganda has always played a significant role in times of conflict. In today’s geopolitical climate, few near-peer nations are more postured to wage an information war — notably, through state-sponsored social media campaigns — than China. How is the US military preparing for such strategic initiatives, whether it be through educating junior enlisted on the content they consume or major division-level measures to guard against this brand of infiltration. Furthermore, how will the U.S. government move to counter China’s attempts at swaying the American public?​

In the contested waters of the Indo-Pacific, unmanned aerial and maritime systems have become vital force multipliers for U.S. military operations against China’s expanding presence. This panel will examine how unmanned technologies are reshaping the U.S. military’s approach to sea and air control in the region, as well as efforts to develop counter-unmanned systems.​

US military ground forces have increasingly turned their eyes toward the Pacific, as Marine and Army units eye increased presences in places like Australia and Guam, among others. With China’s eyes fixed on Taiwan and North Korea ever looming, military assets in the region are re-positioning and interoperating with other regional allies to deter such aggression. E.g., Marines even reopened a Peleliu airstrip that puts Marine and joint military aircraft within 1,000 miles of Manila, Philippines, and 1,400 miles from the bulk of Marine forces in Okinawa, Japan. What does the future hold when it comes to moving military assets to the region, both via personnel and weapons systems? What are the best methods to deter such threats before a conflict can ever erupt? ​

For years, the U.S. has been pushed by military officials and lawmakers to devote more resources to the rapidly evolving Arctic environment, but it is a recent surge in regional collaboration between China and Russia that is giving rise to an all-new sense of urgency. Beijing is increasingly eyeing the Arctic as a domain that would further China’s power assertions and economic resources. Such concerns have been amplified by a swarm of recent military activity in the region. Further exacerbating developments has been a warming climate throughout the high North, where temperatures since 1979 have heated four times faster than the rest of the world, degrading ice caps and glaciers and opening previously inaccessible shipping and settlement routes. How will the US military be more of a player in the region, be it through increased naval activity, adding ice breakers or ground force operations alongside regional allies like Norway, Sweden or Finland?

The relationship between the United States and China has been a key issue for the past several administrations. The panel will evaluate the U.S. strategy of assembling a network of like-minded nations in the region to help counterbalance Beijing’s saber-rattling around Taiwan and territorial claims in the South China Sea. How is U.S. foreign military aid reflecting those nations’ needs, and how can Washington ensure continued access to strategic locales while maintaining freedom of navigation in the oceans?​