Montreal International Security Summit

The Montreal International Security Summit was created in 2023 to address some of the most pressing geopolitical issues of our time. The aim of the annual summit is to convene Canadian and international experts to shed light on ongoing crises and to engage in constructive dialogue about the implications for global security and human rights. The conference brings together leading practitioners, policymakers, and thought leaders from around the world, all of whom share a common dedication to understanding and resolving contemporary and emerging challenges to human rights and security.

Montreal International Security Summit 2024

A conference on China and the Indo-Pacific

In 2024, the MISS will focus on China and the Info-Pacific and take place on 16-17 October. 

Confirmed speakers and moderators

- Benedict Rogers (Hong Kong Watch)
- Tomohiko Taniguchi (Fujitsu Future Studies Centre)
- Melissa Chan (The Global Reporting Centre)
- Sophie Richardson (Stanford University)
- Irwin Cotler (Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights)
- Reinhard Bütikofer (European Parliament MEP)
- Robert Fife (The Globe and Mail)
- Nadège Roland (National Bureau of Asian Research)
- Sarah Cook (Independent Researcher)
- Evan Solomon (GZero Media)
- Margaret McCuaig Johnson (China Strategic Risks Institute)
- Jakub Janda (European Values Center for Security Policy)
- Mercedes Stephenson (Global News)
- Vina Nadjibulla (Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada)
- Benjamin Tallis (German Council on Foreign Relations)
- Jonathan Berkshire Miller (MacDonald-Laurier Institute)

Montreal International Security Summit 2023

A conference on the ongoing invasion of Ukraine

In 2023, MIGS hosted the inaugural Montreal International Security Summit on 11-12 October. The event focused on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the war’s impact on global security and human rights. Partners include the Canadian Department of National Defence, the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung Canada, the European Council on Foreign Relations, the MacDonald-Laurier Institute and the Canadian International Council.

See here for photos of the Summit

Videos: 

“Ukraine Under Attack: High Level Discussion” Featuring: Yuliya Kovaliv (Ukraine’s Ambassador to Canada), Serge Schmemann (Writer and Journalist NY Times), Liet. General (ret) Hon. Andrew Leslie, Naomi Kikoler (Director, Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide, U.S. Holocaust Museum), Ali Ehsassi, (Canadian MP). Journalist Lisa Laflamme moderates the discussion.

“NATO’s response to the war in Ukraine: a Zeitenwende?”  Featuring: Rémi Landry (Associate Professor, Université de Sherbrooke), Jennifer Welsh (Canada 150 Research Chair in Global Governance and Security, McGill University), Alexander Lanozska (Assistant Professor of International Relations at the University of Waterloo), Jessica Berlin (German and American political analyst). Debra Arbec (journalist and anchor of CBC Montreal News) moderates the conversation

“Justice and Accountability for Atrocity Crimes”  Featuring: David Mandel-Anthony (Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Global Criminal Justice, U.S. Department of State), Ekkehard Strauss, Professor (Berlin School of Economics and Law), Savita Pawnday (Executive Director, Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect), David Donat Cattin (Former Secretary General of Parliamentarians for Global Action, Professor, NYU). Laura-Julie Perreault (journalist, La Presse) moderates the conversation.

“The Great Disinformation Game: Understanding Authoritarian Tactics”  Featuring: Marcus Kolga (Senior Fellow, MacDonald Laurier Institute), Chris Beall (Senior Fellow, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace), Eugene Czolij (President, NGO “Ukraine-2050”), Tomass Pildegovics, Senior Expert, NATO Stratcom COE), and Kyoko Kuwahara (Visiting Fellow, MacDonald Laurier Institute). Aphrodite Salas (associate professor, Department of Journalism, Concordia University) moderates the conversation. 

“Outcomes: for Ukraine, Russia, Europe, and the Rule of Law?”  Featuring: Jeremy Kinsman (former Canadian Ambassador to Russia), Jessica Berlin (German and American political analyst), Azeem Ibrahim (director, New Lines Institute), and Kenneth Roth (former executive director, Human Rights Watch) discuss outcomes for Ukraine, Russia and Europe. Terry Martin (Germany-based international journalist) moderates the conversation. 

“The China-Russia Axis and Ukraine”  Balkan Devlen (director, Transatlantic Program and senior fellow, Macdonald-Laurier Institute), Elisabeth Braw (senior fellow, American Enterprise Institute), Jonathan Berkshire Miller (director, Foreign Affairs, National Defence and National Security, Macdonald-Laurier Institute), and Christopher Walker (vice president, Studies and Analysis, National Endowment for Democracy) discuss the China-Russia axis and Ukraine. Evan Solomon (publisher, GZero Media) moderates the conversation.