Program

Location: The University Aula, Karl Johans gt. 47, 0162 Oslo

  • 08:00 - 08:50 Registration

The transatlantic partners are facing a “new normal” as the liberal international order is under pressure both from the outside and within. The great powers of the East, Russia, China and other authoritarian states, are continuously contesting the West. Simultaneously, the US global role is rapidly changing as the Trump administration challenges the rules-based world order by weakening its main pillars: multilateral institutions, rule of law, liberal rights and free trade. How should NATO, the EU and small states like Norway, respond to these critical and rapidly changing shifts in the international order? How do we make our institutions relevant? Will the current situation require new forms of cooperation and strengthen bilateral and regional alliances?

Monday, february 2nd

  • 09:00 - 09:10 Words of Welcome
  • Kate Hansen Bundt, Secretary General, The Norwegian Atlantic Committee
  • 09:10 - 10:00 Navigating the “New Normal”
  • Keynote: Jonas Gahr Støre, Prime Minister of Norway
  • Kaja Kallas, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission 

In conversation with: Kate Hansen Bundt, Secretary General, The Norwegian Atlantic Committee

  • 10:00 - 10:30 Future Transatlantic Relations
  • Radmila Shekerinska, NATO Deputy Secretary General

In conversation with: Kate Hansen Bundt, Secretary General, The Norwegian Atlantic 
Committee 

  • 10:30 - 11:30 The MAGA World Order & Consequences for the Transatlantic Partners

Donald Trump’s second presidency has rattled the world order through its raw exercise of power. In order to “Make America Great Again” Trump’s administration has openly flouted international law, weaponized international trade, questioned allies’ ability to collective defence and apparently embraced the idea of spheres of interest. Do we find a grand strategy behind Trumps foreign policy and does the National Security Strategy coin this? Does this pave the way for a new structural shift in US foreign policy, or is it marly a result of Trump himself? An essential question becomes which elements will remain of the current strategy? Will Trumpism outlive the president? How will this shape the transatlantic partnership and the global order in the years to come?

Chaired by: Janne Haaland Matlary, Professor, University of Oslo

  • Andrew Michta, Professor of Strategic Studies, University of Florida
  • Dr. Barbara Kunz, Senior Researcher and Director of the European Security Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
  • Kaush Arha, Senior Visiting Fellow, Atlantic Council and Senior Fellow at the Center for Technology & Diplomacy at Purdue 
  • Lt. Gen (ret.) Ben Hodges, former Commanding General of US Army Europe 
  • 11:30 - 12:30 Lunch
  • 12:30 - 13:30 Norway & Poland – Close Allies in Northern Europe

As Europe adapts to an increasingly contested security environment, cooperation between aligned and capable allies becomes essential. In Northern Europe, Poland is a fast growing economic and military power. Both Norway and Poland view Russia as the main threat to European security. The two countries have bolstered cooperation over the common aim to secure a Ukrainian victory. This is exemplified through Camp Jomsborg – a training camp for Ukrainian troops in Poland. The Foreign Ministers of Norway and Poland will discuss the current transatlantic security situation and the challenges ahead.

Chaired by: Kate Hansen Bundt, Secretary General, The Norwegian Atlantic Committee

  • Espen Barth Eide, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway
  • Radosław Sikorski, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland 
  • 13:30 - 15:00 How to Deter Russia while Carving out a Future Path for Ukraine

Russia’s continued aggression against Ukraine remains the defining security challenge for Europe. How can an effective deterrence against Russia be strengthened and upheld under the current strained transatlantic relationship? What strategic options lie ahead for Ukraine, what incentives does Putin have to end the war and how will these choices shape European and transatlantic security in the years to come?

Chaired by: Ulf Sverdrup, Professor, Department of Law and Governance, the Norwegian Business School

  • Keir Giles, Senior Consulting Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Programme, Chatham House 
  • Katarzyna Pisarska, Professor, Chair of the Warsaw Security Forum, Civic Activist, Scholar and Expert in International Security 
  • Lieutenant General (ret.) Arne Bård Dalhaug, Senior Advisor, The Norwegian Atlantic Committee
  • 15:00 - 15:30 Coffee break
  • 15:30 - 16:30 Response from a Strategically Fragmented Europe

As Europe confronts a more volatile security environment, its ability to respond is shaped not only by external threats, but by internal economic, political and strategic conditions and internal fragmentation. Diverging threat perceptions, national priorities, and defence postures, complicate Europe’s capacity to act united and cohesively at a time of heightened pressure on the transatlantic partnership. How should Europe respond to a changing international order, strengthen collective action, and contribute more effectively to European and transatlantic security? 

Chaired by: Dr. Barbara Kunz, Senior Researcher and Director of the European Security Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute 

  • Sten Rynning, Director of the Danish Institute of Advanced Study and a Professor of War Studies, the University of Southern Denmark 
  • Rob Johnson, Director of the Changing Character of War Centre, University of Oxford 
  • Bruno Tertrais, Deputy Director, Fondation pour la recherche stratégique 
  • Karl-Heinz Kemp, Associate fellow, Center for Order and Governance in Eastern Europe, Russia, and Central Asia, German Council on Foreign Relations 

 

Tuesday, february 3rd.

Norway is one of NATO’s key front-line actors in the High North especially when it comes to monitoring Russian nuclear posture on the Kola Peninsula aimed for the US. In addition, its long coastline is a critical entry point for allied reinforcements in the event of war. The Norwegian government is modernizing and strengthening the Royal Norwegian Navy. However, as one of Europe’s small states, Norway is dependent upon allies with shared interests, willing and able to stand up for each other. The recent bilateral Lunna Agreement with our long-term allied Britain, is an example of that.

  • 09:30 - 10:00 The Geostrategy of the Maritime Domain

Chaired by: Kate Hansen Bundt, Secretary General, The Norwegian Atlantic Committee

  • Andreas Flåm, State Secretary, Norwegian Ministry of Defence
  • 10:00 - 11:30 Maritime Cooperation in The North Atlantic

Chaired by: Julian Lindley-French, Chairman of The Alphen Group 

  • Rear Admiral Oliver Berdal, Chief of the Royal Norwegian Navy 
  • Major General Richard J Cantrill OBE MC Royal Marines, Commander Operations, Royal Navy
  • Katarzyna Zysk, Professor, Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies 
  • Sten Rynning, Director of the Danish Institute of Advanced Study and a Professor of War Studies, the University of Southern Denmark
  • 11:30 - 11:50 Coffee break
  • 11:50 - 13:00 US' Asia Policy: Implications for Europe

The strategic importance of Northern European maritime security is increasingly interconnected with the Indo-Pacific, particularly the shared need of allies and partners to counter Russian and Chinese naval ambitions. The United States, the strongest military power in NATO, is prioritizing its military rivalry with China in East Asia. How is Norway along with key European allies working to fill some of the strategic gaps and challenges that are emerging due to the US-China superpower rivalry?

Chaired by: Jo Inge Bekkevold, Senior Advisor, Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies 

  • Luis Simón, Director, Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy, Vrije Universiteit Brussels
  • Øystein Tunsjø, Professor, Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies 
  • Kaush Arha, Senior Visiting Fellow, Atlantic Council and Senior Fellow at the Center for Technology & Diplomacy at Purdue 
  • Closing remarks

Grete Faremo, Chair of the Board, The Norwegian Atlantic Committee

  • Lunch