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03 Sep 25. The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) announced the full list of speakers who will be attending the IISS Prague Defence Summit, which takes place between Wednesday 3 and Friday 5 September 2025 at the Prague Marriott Hotel.
As previously published, Mark Rutte, NATO Secretary General and former Prime Minister of the Netherlands is to deliver the Keynote Address on Thursday 4 September. Prior to that, Czech foreign minister Jan Lipavský will deliver the Opening Speech on Wednesday 3 September.
Additional speakers are listed below (in alphabetical order):
Dr Joachim Adler, Head of Defence Policy, Switzerland
Brigadier General Marek Banas, Deputy Chief of the General Staff; Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, Slovak Republic
Stanley Brown, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Political-Military Affairs, Department of State, United States
Lieutenant General, Antonio Conserva, Chief of Staff, Italian Air Force
Rene S. Diaz, Undersecretary for Defense, Technology, Research and Industry Development, Department of National Defense, Philippines
Dr Thanos Dokos, National Security Adviser to the Prime Minister, Greece
Senator Pavel Fischer, Chair, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security, Senate of the Czech Republic
Camille Grand, Secretary General, Aerospace, Security and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD), European Union
Robert de Groot, Vice President, European Investment Bank
Professor Dr Haluk Görgün, Secretary, Secretariat of Defence Industries, Türkiye
Dr Cho Hyunki, Deputy Minister for Military Resources Management, Ministry of National Defense, Republic of Korea
Dr Pål Jonson, Minister for Defence, Sweden
Brigadier General Arnt Kuebart, Commander, Ground-Based Forces, Air Force Command, Germany
Janne Kuusela, Director General, Defence Policy Department, Ministry of Defence, Finland
Major General Jaroslav Míka, Deputy Head, Operations Command, Czech Republic
Marek Mora, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Finance, Czech Republic
Dr Jean-François Morel, Assistant Chief of Defence Intelligence, Department of National Defence, Canada
Lieutenant General Dariusz Parylak, Commander Multinational Corps Northeast, NATO
Moshe Patel, Director, Israel Missile Defence Organisation, Ministry of Defence, Israel
Tomáš Pojar, National Security Adviser to the Prime Minister, Czech Republic
General Karel Řehka, Chief of the General Staff, Ministry of Defence, Czech Republic
Sebastian von Ribbentrop, Founding Partner, Join Capital, United Kingdom
Jiří Šedivý, Director General, Defence Policy and Strategy, Ministry of Defence, Czech Republic
The Lord Sedwill, Former Cabinet Secretary and National Security Adviser, UK Cabinet; Chair of the Trustees, IISS
Air Chief Marshal Harvey Smyth, Chief of the Air Staff, Ministry of Defence, United Kingdom
General Rudolf Striedinger, Chief of Defence Staff, Federal Ministry of Defence, Austria
Kadri Tammai, Regional Director Europe, Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic, NATO
Dr Marcin Terlikowski, Research Director, Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM)
Air Vice-Marshal Dianne Turton, Military Representative to NATO and the EU, Department of Defence, Australia
Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Wooddisse, Commander, Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, NATO
Commodore Jeroen van Zanten, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM), NATO
The IISS Prague Defence Summit will assemble government leaders, defence officials, senior industry representatives, analysts and media from the transatlantic community and beyond to discuss challenges and opportunities for European defence capability development. The Summit aims to translate wider policy goals into a specific implementation agenda focused on defence innovation, procurement and building the capabilities required to defend Europe.
Discussion at the 2025 Summit will focus on the development of a roadmap for the defence of Europe, the evolving transatlantic and European defence ecosystems, operational challenges related to deterring Russia, the role of external partners in generating European military capacity, and new approaches to funding defence.
A new IISS Strategic Dossier, ‘Progress and Shortfalls in Europe’s Defence: An Assessment’, reveals important steps required to strengthen Europe’s military readiness. Published before the IISS Prague Defence Summit 2025, the Dossier highlights the key issues as political, military and industry leaders prepare to debate how to meet new capability targets set for NATO allies.
It builds on the assessments made in the 2024 IISS publication, ‘Building Defence Capacity in Europe: An Assessment’. One year on, pressure has only increased on European decision-makers amid Russia’s continued military threat and now with uncertainty concerning the United States’ commitment to European security.
The dossier’s main findings are as follows:
Addressing Europe’s Key Military Hardware Gaps
Europe faces critical capability gaps, including insufficient intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), space launch –facilities and platforms, long-range strike weapons and rocket artillery.
Europe Struggles to Close Cloud and Software Gaps
Europe remains dependent on US firms for hyperscale cloud-computing capabilities, at a time when these systems are becoming increasingly important in future warfighting concepts. Europe’s edge cloud-computing capacity is stronger, and its command-and-control software is globally competitive, but gaps persist in high-capability datalinks critical to multi-domain operations.
Slow Progress in Building Europe’s Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD)
Europe lacks adequate IAMD capacity across almost the entire threat spectrum, with exo-atmospheric interception reliant on US assets. New systems are being introduced, but it is unclear how NATO’s ambition to quadruple air and missile defence across the Alliance can be achieved.
Gradual Shifts in European Defence Procurement and Industry
More European countries are prioritising procurement from domestic or European suppliers, but the proportion allocated differs across domains. 53% went to European systems, with approximately 36% being spent on US equipment, but the US still dominates in the aerospace realm. Legislative changes to accelerate procurement timelines are modest so far, but bolder efforts are under way to change how ministries of defence operate.
Europe Meets NATO Defence Goal but Risks Falling Behind Without Urgent Action
Spending in 2025 is more than 50% higher in nominal terms than in 2022. However, continued success is not guaranteed, and several European allies will struggle to meet NATO’s new funding targets. Sustained public and private investment, including venture-capital investment, long-term contracts and faster procurement decisions, will be important for success.
A public launch for the Dossier will be held on Wednesday 2 September 2025 in the Bohemia Room at the Prague Marriott Hotel, at 14.30 CEST. A full stream of the event will be available here.
27 Aug 25. The September International Defence Industry Exhibition in Kielce promises to be one of the most important in the event’s history. From 2 to 5 September, Targi Kielce will host over eight hundred companies from thirty-four countries, including representatives of global defence corporations and the largest Polish companies in the sector. The exhibition halls will showcase the latest technological solutions that are just entering the market, and some of them will have their premiere in Kielce. The Polish Armaments Group, the strategic partner of the event, will premiere the Baobab serial mine-laying vehicle. The first serial production unit of the New Amphibious Infantry Fighting Vehicle Borsuk marks another and equally important debut. Borsuk is one of the most significant projects in the history of the Polish armaments industry, created based on domestic technical ideas and original design solutions. Another noteworthy novelty will be the premiere of the Heavy Infantry Fighting Vehicle model. In total, the Polish Armaments Group will present a dozen or so tracked and wheeled vehicles for various purposes at the Kielce exhibition. The RAF1 containerised photovoltaic power plant will also be unveiled, allowing for quick and independent power supply to military bases and posts in any terrain. Companies specialising in anti-drone systems, next-generation radars, modern camouflage systems, and robotic production processes for defence will also showcase their solutions. The premieres galore will also include residential modules for soldiers, which provide comfort and functionality in field conditions. The WB Group has announced a powerful presence, presenting its vision of a ‘multi-domain revolution’ at MSPO. The presentation will feature the new COMP@NZ programmable radio stations, the expansion of the Warmate drone family to include heavier combat variants, and the new X-FRONTER unmanned aerial vehicle. The group’s expo stands will display artificial intelligence systems for target recognition and classification, as well as Fonet and Topaz communication solutions, complemented by completely new hybrid vehicle concepts that can operate in both manned and unmanned modes. The announcement of the presentation of unmanned surface units intended for the Navy is particularly interesting as they are capable of carrying loitering munitions.
Numerous conferences and industry debates will also be an integral part of this year’s Expo. Experts, military, and industry representatives will meet on the stages located next to the exhibition. They come here to discuss the future of defence, the role of new technologies in the modernisation of the armed forces, as well as security in cyberspace and the development of unmanned capabilities. Panel sessions will serve as a forum for exchanging experiences and presenting analyses that may inform the direction of cooperation in the years to come. MSPO is not only about hardware premieres, but also a venue for high-level meetings and talks. The President of the Republic of Poland, who offered his auspices to the event, announces his visit to Kielce. MSPO will also host military and government delegations from around the world, including those from NATO and European Union countries, as well as from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. The presence of defence ministers, chiefs of staff and high-ranking officers makes the fair a space for political and business dialogue. This is where issues of regional security, industrial cooperation, and specific purchasing projects are discussed.
As Andrzej Mochoń, President of Targi Kielce, emphasises, the Expo is increasingly going beyond the role of an exhibition and is becoming an event of strategic importance. – MSPO is the forum where industry meets defence policy. We see how the talks held in Kielce translate into real decisions and contracts – as Andrzej Mochoń highlights.
MSPO will therefore confirm Poland’s role as an essential link in the global security system and demonstrate that Kielce has become one of the most important locations in Europe where strategic partnerships are established. (Source: joint-forces.com)
29 Aug 25. The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) announced that Jan Lipavský, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, will deliver the opening speech at the IISS Prague Defence Summit, taking place from Wednesday 3 – Friday 5 September 2025. Building on the success of the inaugural event in 2024, the IISS Prague Defence Summit will bring together government leaders, defence officials, senior industry representatives, analysts and media from across the transatlantic community and beyond to discuss the future of European defence capability development. The summit is designed to advance public debate while supporting practical steps toward implementation, particularly in the areas of defence innovation, procurement and industrial cooperation. Discussion at the 2025 Summit will focus on the development of a roadmap for the defence of Europe, the evolving transatlantic and European defence ecosystems, operational challenges related to deterring Russia, the role of external partners in generating European military capacity, and new approaches to funding defence.
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