After a decade of war in Afghanistan and a seemingly endless search for Osama bin Laden, the terrorist kingpin was finally found—in Pakistan. The inability of Pakistan to police extremists inside its own borders raises troubling questions about a country that US officials would still like to consider an ally in the war on terrorism. Can we ever consider Afghanistan stable, if it has an unstable relationship with Pakistan?
Modern warfare is advancing faster than our ethical framework can keep up with it. This leaves us struggling to make sense of a new kind of war, in which unmanned drones can hit targets from miles away, and a computer virus can do as much damage to a nation’s infrastructure as a cruise missile. How can we adjust the rules of war—and our sense of right and wrong—to account for these new technologies?
November 18th marked the closing of the 4th Halifax International Security Forum, a community for thoughtful and engaged decision-makers from governments, militaries, business, academia, and the media, who work together to meet emerging threats in a changing world.
Convened in Halifax, Nova Scotia every year, the Forum provides an unscripted, discussion-based atmosphere. This year, the Forum hosted 300 leaders from 50 countries who participated in 32 panels, dinners and night owl discussions, covering dozens of topics from Syria and Gaza to energy independence and cyber attacks.
In their closing remarks, Canadian Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay and Halifax International Security Forum President Peter Van Praagh reflected on the weekend’s conversations, the importance of the Forum in the foreign policy community, and how the discussions at Halifax can lead to action moving forward.
As the 4th annual Halifax International Security Forum drew to a close, Canadian Minister of National Defence Peter MacKay spoke to the press about the importance of the Forum, and fielded questions from reporters on Canada’s national defense and role in conflicts around the world. Minister MacKay sounded an optimistic note on the future of Afghanistan, where Canadian troops will withdraw by 2014, but noted that Pakistan must play a more constructive role in securing the transition to democracy.
