27–29 April 2021 – The NESA Center hosted a maritime and regional security workshop in a partnership with the National Maritime Foundation (NMF) that focused on the changing environmental and strategic challenges in the Bay of Bengal region. The workshop was kicked off by comments from NESA Director LTG (Ret) Terry Wolff and NMF Chairman Admiral Sunil Lanba. Keynote remarks from Brigadier General (USAF) David Shoemaker, Deputy Director, Headquarters, USINDOPACOM and Mr. Harsh Kumar Jain (AS BIMSTEC, SAARC and Nalanda), Ministry of External Affairs, India initiated the panels. The workshop welcomed foreign service and military officers from countries of the Bay of Bengal region and those located within or with an interest in the wider Indian Ocean Region. Featured speakers came from a wide array of backgrounds, including military services, academic institutions, government research institutions, and think tanks. The topic of general discussion was “Challenges Emerging out of the COVID Environment.” NMF Director-General, Vice Admiral Pradeep Chauhan and NESA’s Jeff Payne served as primary hosts for the event.
![Speakers during the 2021 Bay of Bengal Workshop](https://nesa-center.org/dev/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/May-2021-Bay-of-Bengal.jpg)
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