RUSI Integrated Air and Missile Defence Conference 2026

Registration will take place between 08:45 and 09:15. Please take your seat at least 5 minutes before the start of the conference.

The Russian missile threat has increased by an order of magnitude in both scale and complexity over the past three years. This session will examine the technological characteristics of this threat, how it is likely to manifest across specific geographic contexts and levels of conflict and what the implications are for adaptation to the evolving air threat.

Speakers:
Major General Anders Jernberg, Chief of the Norwegian Defence Logistics Organization
Dr Jack Watling, Senior Research Fellow, RUSI
Sam Cranny-Evans, RUSI Associate Fellow

Chair: Air Cdre Paul O’Neill, Senior Associate Fellow, RUSI

Tea, coffee and refreshments will be available for conference delegates.

This session will address the minimum level of protection required for forces in the field and their enabling assets at depth in order to sustain effective military operations. It will consider how air and missile defence requirements differ across operating environments and the specific force protection demands of operating at expeditionary reach.

Speakers:
Commodore Marcus Hember, Deputy Director Navy Capability Plans, Royal Navy
Colonel Stuart Hay, Commander, 7 Air Defence Group, British Army
Air Vice-Marshal (Ret.) Lincoln Taylor, former Chief of Staff, Capability Headquarters, Air Command, Royal Air Force

Chair: Matthew Savill, Director Military Sciences RUSI

Please note that this session is entirely 'off the record'. Neither the prepared remarks nor the responses to questions are for reporting and are attributable neither to the individual, nor to the event. THIS INCLUDES ALL FORMS OF SOCIAL MEDIA.

There will be a quick break between sessions of 10 minutes,

The erosion of boundaries between rear areas and frontlines, combined with the increasing integration of conventional and nuclear threats, means that air and missile defence has a strategic as well as an operational dimension. This session will examine concepts of sufficiency against strategic threats, the interdependencies between NATO allies’ national air defences, and the intersection between integrated air and missile defence and nuclear policy.

Speakers:
Frank A. Rose, Former Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance
Radoslava Stefanova, Head of IAMD Section NATO Defence Investment Division
Dr Tom Karako, Director Missile Defence Programme, CSIS
Pierre Roty, Head of Air Defence – Sales & Business Development MBDA France

Chair: Dr Sidharth Kaushal, Senior Research Fellow, RUSI

Lunch will be provided for conference delegates.

A discussion of how nations can sequence their priorities as well as balance resources and commitments in the face of a diverse and evolving threat spectrum.

Speakers:
Air Marshal (ret) Edward Stringer, Former ACDS (Operations)
Matthew Savill, Director of Military Sciences, RUSI
Raytheon representative
Professor Steven Barrett, CEO, Cambridge Aerospace

Chair: Paul Livingston, Chief Executive, Lockheed Martin UK

There will be a short break of 10 meetings between sessions.

This session will examine threats beyond Europe that are likely to shape European security. The panel will explore the future trajectory of Iran’s missile capabilities and those of its proxies following two years of significant strategic setbacks, alongside broader global developments in the evolving threat landscape.

Speakers:
Dr Uzi Rubin, Former Head of the Israeli Missile Defence Organization
Jeremy Knupp, Northrop Grumman
Eben Frankenberg, CEO Echodyne
Chair/Discussant: Sam Cranny-Evans, RUSI Associate Fellow

Closing remarks given by Dr Sidharth Kaushal, Senior Research Fellow, RUSI

Conference delegates are invited to attend a networking and drinks reception at the end of the conference.