The 19th Annual Baltic Conference on Defence (ABCD), organised by the International Centre for Defence and Security and the Estonian Ministry of Defence, will take place on 23-24 September 2025in Tallinn, Estonia.

Enemy at the Gates:

 Turning Europe into a Fortress

Russia´s war of aggression against Ukraine and evolving transatlantic relations have highlighted vulnerabilities in the defence and security of Europe, underscoring the need for rapid and decisive action to secure the continent.

This year’s conference, titled “Enemy at the Gates: Turning Europe into a Fortress”, will focus on shoring up Europe’s defence in an uncertain security environment.  Our discussions will focus on the additional measures NATO Allies and EU Member States must implement to enhance Europe’s military readiness and NATO’s collective defence, the prospects for effective European cooperation to fill military capability gaps, the financing of our common defence efforts, and more.

Since 2006, ABCD has provided a high-level forum for intellectual debate on transatlantic, European and regional defence issues amongst policymakers, military officials, academics, analysts and media representatives. We would be delighted to have you join us for this year’s edition of ABCD which, for the first time, will be held in the framework of Estonian Defence Week. Please save the date and stay tuned for more information soon!

For updates, please visit the conference website at abcd.icds.ee

For any enquiries, please do not hesitate to reach out to the organisers at abcd@icds.ee