Post by Conference of Defence Associations Institute

Last week, the 2026 Ottawa Conference on Security and Defence brought together leaders from government, the Canadian Armed Forces, allied nations, academia, and industry for two days of important discussions on the future of Canadian defence and security This year’s theme, “The Road to Five Percent”, focused on what Canada’s commitment to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035 means in practice: for the Canadian Armed Forces, for our alliances, for innovation, and for the broader resilience of Canadian society. We were honoured to hear from an exceptional group of speakers, including Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Indira Anand, Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy | Marine royale canadienne Angus Topshee Secretary of State (Defence) Stephen Fuhr PC MP CD, Canadian Permanent Representative to NATO Heidi Hulan, CDS Gen Jennie Carignan, as well as distinguished international partners and experts. Across two days, we examined the evolving threat environment, the future of #NATO, lessons from allied “total defence” models, continental defence and #NORAD modernization, recruitment and retention challenges within the CAF, and the role of innovation and sovereign capability in #Canada’s defence future. We are deeply grateful to all panelists and speakers whose insights enriched the dialogue. A sincere thank you to our sponsors, partners, speakers, and the dedicated teams at the Conference of Defence Associations and the CDA Institute who made this event possible. For those who could not attend in person, sessions will be uploaded to our YouTube channel throughout the week. Additionally, later this week we will be releasing a recap podcast to cover the best sessions and exchanges from the event. Thank you to everyone who joined us, whether in Ottawa or online, for making this year’s conference such a success. We look forward to continuing these conversations in the months ahead. TKMS Canada Ltd., Hanwha Canada, ING Robotic Aviation Inc., Dominion Dynamics, BDC, QinetiQ Target Systems - Canada, Calian Group, Safran, CPAC (Cable Public Affairs Channel / Chaîne d'affaires publiques par câble), Hatch, Commissionaires Ottawa, Embassy of Lithuania to Canada, RBC Insurance, ADGA Group, Dataminr, Logistik Unicorp Inc., Thales, KPMG Canada, Lockheed Martin Canada CDL Systems Ltd, Raytheon, Stewart McKelvey #OttawaConference #Defence #NationalSecurity #Canada #NATO #PublicPolicy