The International Institute for Strategic Studies 31d ago

In a Special Address to the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue on Saturday 30 May, President of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste Dr José Ramos-Horta urged the Asia-Pacific’s leading policymakers, business leaders and opinion-shapers not to allow history to ‘imprison their hearts and minds’ as he called for them to address the underlying causes that lie behind the world’s conflicts. ‘While we find more money to prepare for war, we struggle to find money to prevent the conditions that make conflict more likely. A missile can deter an adversary but cannot hold back the sea, a tank can defend a border but it cannot restore a failed harvest. A submarine can patrol an ocean, but it cannot rebuild trust in a society displaced by disaster and conflict.’ IISS Shangri-La Dialogue   29–31 May 2026 #IISS_SLD26   go.iiss.org/SLD26