Overview
- The 23rd Shangri‑La Dialogue began in Singapore on Friday with 44 countries and dozens of ministerial delegations present and Vietnam’s President To Lam delivering the keynote address.
- U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is the headline U.S. speaker and held bilateral talks with Singapore’s Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing to reaffirm the long‑standing Singapore–U.S. defence partnership.
- Beijing again did not send its defence minister and instead dispatched a delegation led by Major General Meng Xiangqing from the PLA National Defence University, a choice critics call a missed chance for strategic reassurance.
- Delegations used plenary remarks and private meetings to probe whether Washington will sustain commitments after recent Middle East fighting and the Trump–Xi summit, prompting many states to consider diversifying arms suppliers and partnerships.
- Beyond great‑power signaling, smaller states pushed for rules‑based measures and technical cooperation on maritime security, undersea infrastructure and supply‑chain resilience as practical ways to protect trade and sovereignty.