Every year, many of the top names in international relations gather in quiet Halifax, Nova Scotia for the Halifax International Security Forum. The Halifax Forum is a meeting of world leaders, including Presidents and Prime Ministers, defence ministers and foreign ministers, and admirals and generals. For three days, they discuss their overlapping work, overlapping interests, and the survival of democracies.
By Jay Heisler
This year, there was a muted feeling to the proceedings, with a general acknowledgement that the world is becoming a less safe place.
However, in an opening press conference, the attitude from Forum organizers and world leaders was one of dedication to weathering the challenges ahead.
The press conference, taking place at 11am on Friday, November 22, featured Canada’s Minister of National Defense Bill Blair and Halifax International Security Forum’s President Peter Van Praagh.
Blair received several questions about his feelings about working with an incoming Trump administration in the US, and was diplomatic and optimistic, saying he believed that US-Canada ties would remain strong, as they did during the previous Trump administration.
The US Congressional Delegation had a special celebrity guest this year, former Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, who had run for President in the 2020 Democratic Primaries. As well, Hilary Clinton’s 2016 running mate Tim Kaine. Klobuchar and Kaine walked by CDR’s reporter at the forum, who admits to being starstruck when Kaine turned and greeted him as he passed. The Republican Party side was represented by Forum regulars such as South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds and Idaho Senator Jim Risch.
The press room was bustling as always, and CDR was happy to work side by side with journalists from PBS, Politico, and CBC. Foreign military officers mingled from the UK, Ukraine and Argentina. Substantial delegations were present from Ukraine and Taiwan.
CDR made a point of sitting down with Van Praagh to discuss the Forum’s goals and achievements.
“The mission of Halifax International Security Forum is strategic cooperation among the world’s democracies,” Van Praagh explained. “At Halifax, we advance that mission by convening the democratic, military and thought leaders who confront the most pressing threats to democracy, peace and freedom on a daily basis – often on the front lines.”
“Our role is to bring the right people together for these difficult conversations,” Van Praagh told CDR. “Together, our participants embrace the responsibility of turning these difficult conversations into collective action.”
CDR’s reporter has attended the Forum every year since 2018 and has noted that the Ukraine War has dominated proceedings since 2022.
READ: HFX 2024 highlights Ukraine’s Fight for Democracy and Security
“Every international issue is linked to Ukraine’s victory over Putin’s Russia,” Van Praagh told CDR. “Taiwan’s security, indeed all of East Asia, Israel’s security and the future of the Middle East, Africa, Latin America—every international issue is directly linked to Ukraine’s victory over Putin’s Russia.”
“In Halifax, in each of the last three years, we have been illustrating this vital strategic consideration for democratic leaders,” Van Praagh added. “We wanted to give people a sense of confidence that if Ukraine has the right tools for the job, it can finish it. I’m hearing optimism – and optimism is contagious.”
The threat from Russia and China weighed heavy on the proceedings.
Yun Sun is a Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the East Asia Program and Director of the China Program at the Stimson Center, a Washington DC-based nonpartisan think tank.
Sun told CDR that “the current trend” in Canada-China relations, “is a mixture of different elements,” explaining, “A lot of will depend on the Canadian domestic politics and also on the impact of changes in US-China relations.”
The Forum has bravely put itself on the front lines of some of the top human rights struggles of our time.
Abdulhakim Idris is a prominent Uyghur activist and Executive Director of the Center for Uyghur Studies in Falls Church, Virginia. He is former Inspector General at the World Uyghur Congress.
“I came to the Halifax International Security Forum to present the Uyghur perspective,” Idris told CDR. “The genocide that China is carrying out against the Uyghurs cannot be viewed separately from Russia’s war against Ukraine. The security of the Free World cannot be considered apart from the Uyghur issue.”
“During this forum, I tried to highlight how China is supporting Russia in the war in Ukraine by sending weapons manufactured in the Uyghur region,” Idris added.
CDR also had the opportunity to speak with Victoria Belbin, CEO of the Atlantic Canada Aerospace and Defence Association (ACADA).
READ: EXECUTIVE VIEWPOINT – Victoria Belbin
“I am pleased to represent ACADA’s membership at the Halifax International Security Forum again this year,” Belbin told CDR. “It is a powerful and inspiring event that brings important context and urgency to the work aerospace, defence, and security companies are doing here in Atlantic Canada as well as the rest of the country.”
“In addition to the optimism expressed throughout this year’s Forum, another theme arose: Collaboration,” Belbin explained. “There is a fresh set of complex challenges for Democracies in the geopolitical landscape which government is unable to address alone without collaboration from industry.”
“We are seeing firsthand the important role of industry play out on the battlefields of Ukraine and in non-traditional theatres of war like cyberspace,” Belbin added. “Our region is a prime example of how collaboration among government, academia, and industry fosters the innovation needed to address these fresh challenges and create opportunities for Atlantic Canadian companies.”
