Event Date: June 2, 2026 - 1:00pm to 5:00pm
Location: DMS 4101, 55 Laurier Ave E, Ottawa

Registration: Google Forms

Presented by CIPS, the Security Studies Network and the Office of the Vice-President, Research and Innovation (OVPRI) at the University of Ottawa

Much has been said in the past year about the need for Canada to diversify its international partnerships given the challenges posed by the return to the American presidency of Donald Trump. This, however, is much easier said than done. This conference brings together former senior Canadian officials and experts to help us better understand what diversifying security and defence partnerships means in practice: What should the concrete objectives be? What are the main obstacles? Does Canada have the right tools to do this?

Program:

• 1:00pm-1:15pm – Opening remarks
  • Marie-Ève Sylvestre (President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Ottawa), Thomas Juneau (Professor, GSPIA)
• 1:15pm – 2:30pm – Panel 1: Defence
  • Chair: Tjorven Bellmann (German Ambassador to Canada)
  • Speakers:
    • Stefanie Beck (Former Deputy Minister of National Defence)
    • Philippe Lagassé (Professor, Carleton University)
    • Christopher Coates (Retired Lieutenant-General, Former Deputy Commander NORAD)
• 2:30pm-3:00pm – Break
• 3:00pm-3:45pm – Keynote
  • Chair: Thomas Juneau (Professor, GSPIA)
  • Speaker: Wayne Eyre (Former Chief of the Defence Staff)
• 3:45pm-5:00pm – Panel 2: National Security and Intelligence
  • Chair: Alexandra Gheciu (Professor, GSPIA, and Director, CIPS)
  • Speakers:
    • David Vigneault (Former Director, Canadian Security Intelligence Service)
    • Jody Thomas (Former National Security and Intelligence Adviser to the Prime Minister)
    • Kerry Buck (Former Ambassador to NATO)

Speakers:

Stefanie Beck was Deputy Minister (DM) of National Defence (DND) until January 2026 during a period of historic growth. Prior to that she was the DM of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and Associate DM for DND. Ms Beck served as Deputy High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 2020 – 2022. Ms. Beck joined the Government in 1990, serving in External Affairs, the department of Immigration and the Privy Council Office.  Her postings abroad included Senegal, Australia, and as Ambassador in Cambodia and Croatia. Ms. Beck attended high school in Singapore and Canada, and has a BA in German and Italian from McGill University.

Tjorven Bellmann is the German Ambassador to Canada and has served in that role since September 2024. She will share this position with her husband – they will alternate every 8 months. She previously held the position of Assistant Deputy Minister at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. In this role, her responsibilities included bilateral relations with Canada, the United States, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Central Asia, the Western Balkans, EFTA countries and Russia, as well as the G7, NATO, Arctic Policy, the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy, the OSCE and the Council of Europe. Before that, she was Director for Security Policy and served in various roles in the field of security policy, in the Press Division at the Foreign Office as well as at the German Embassies in Tel Aviv and Tehran. She has been awarded the Lithuanian Medal of Honour “Lithuanian Diplomacy Star” and the Polish award ”Bene Merito”. She studied Islamic Studies and European Political Studies. Tjorven Bellmann is married to Matthias Lüttenberg. They have three children.

Kerry Buck was, upon her retirement from the Canadian public service, Assistant Secretary, Economic Sector at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat. Prior to that appointment, she was Canada’s Ambassador to the North Atlantic Council (NATO). She held senior executive positions at Global Affairs Canada: Political Director and Assistant Deputy Minister for International Security and Political Affairs; Assistant Deputy Minister portfolios for Africa and for Latin America and the Caribbean; head of the Afghanistan Task Force; Director General for the Middle East and Maghreb, for Afghanistan and for Public Diplomacy and Federal-Provincial Affairs; Director for Human Rights. Outside of GAC, Kerry served, among other positions, in the Privy Council Office as Director of Operations for Machinery of Government Secretariat responsible for Cabinet and Ministerial mandates. Kerry holds degrees from the University of Western Ontario (BA Hons, Political Science) and McGill University (LLB, BCL).

Christopher Coates is the Director of Foreign Policy, National Security, and National Defence with the MacDonald-Laurier Institute. A retired Lieutenant-General, he was a military helicopter pilot and served as the deputy commander of NORAD. 

Wayne Eyre retired in 2024 as Canada’s Chief of the Defence Staff. As the commander of the Canadian Armed Forces and military advisor to the Prime Minister and Cabinet, he led Canada’s military through an unprecedented confluence of international and domestic crises and rapidly evolving security stressors. In his 40-year military career, he has commanded at all levels, from an infantry rifle platoon to Commander of the Canadian Army.He led numerous domestic operations in Canada, and overseas he served in Cyprus, Croatia, Bosnia, Afghanistan (twice), and South Korea, where he was the most senior Canadian officer ever stationed in the Asia Pacific region.His institutional experience includes working in force development and as Deputy Commander of Military Personnel Command. A graduate of the US Army War College and US Marine Corps School of Advanced Warfighting, he holds a BSc and three master’s degrees.

Alexandra Gheciu is a Professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs (GSPIA) and the Director of CIPS.

Thomas Juneau is a Professor at the University of Ottawa’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and network coordinator of the Security Studies Network at CIPS.

Philippe Lagassé is associate professor and Barton Chair at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. His research focuses on defence policy and procurement, command auhtority and civil-military relations, and the Canadian constitution. He served as an independent review of defence procurements for the Canadian government from 2012-2022. 

Marie-Eve Sylvestre has been president and vice-chancellor of the University of Ottawa since July 1, 2025. Prior to assuming this role, she was dean of the Civil Law Section of the Faculty of Law and co-chair of the Senate Committee on Academic Freedom. Under her leadership, the Civil Law Section promoted transformative learning experiences and achieved record growth in research activities, launching the first certificate in Indigenous law in French in North America and Jurivision.ca, an audiovisual knowledge mobilization platform. She also helped strengthen the ties between the faculty and the local and international community, including through the creation of an Alumni Advisory Board, the Outaouais Interdisciplinary Social Law Clinic and a dual degree offered in collaboration with the European and International School of the Faculty of Law of Lyon 3.

Jody Thomas retired in 2024 after 40+ years in the federal government, as National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister. She was previously the Deputy Minister of National Defence, as well as the Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard.

David Vigneault is the Chief Intelligence Officer for Strider Technologies. David supports engagement with private and public sector organizations, and advances R&D efforts within the intelligence team. Prior to joining Strider, David was the ninth Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS).