Mekong - U.S. Partnership
The Stimson Center and the International Union of Nature (IUCN) will host the first of six Mekong-US Partnership Track 1.5 Policy Dialogues, with the first four-day event beginning March 19 (Asia)/March 18 (U.S.). The opening plenary session will feature keynote remarks from Ambassador Atul Keshap, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs and a high-level panel. The opening plenary session is open to the public and press. RSVP to attend opening plenary: March 19, 8:30am ICT (9:30pm EDT).
Brian Eyler, Director of the Stimson Center’s Southeast Asia Program, said “Stimson and IUCN designed this first Partnership Track 1.5 Policy Dialogue as a platform for local voices to express needs and challenges related to economic development, sustainability, and non-traditional security issues such as pandemic response and transnational organized crime. The United States, through current and future government and non-government efforts has a lot to offer the Mekong region, but those efforts are most likely to succeed when they meet actual needs as articulated by local stakeholders.”
The opening plenary will be livestreamed on March 18, 2021, 9:30-11:00 PM EDT here. Information on submitting questions is available on the livestream page.
Opening Plenary Highlights
Keynote Speaker
Ambassador Atul Keshap, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs. Remarks here.
High Level Plenary Panel with Q&A
Ambassador Tina Redshaw, United Kingdom Ambassador to Cambodia
An Pich Hatda, CEO of the Mekong River Commission
Simon Lalic, Senior Officer, International Command (Bangkok), Australia Federal Police
Dr. Maki Aoki-Okabe, Deputy Director Southeast Asian Studies Group, Institute of Developing Economies-Japan External Trade Organization
