U.S. general, defense majors at Gulf missile defense conference

GeoStrategy Direct ^ | 5/26/2010 | GeoStrategy Direct

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

The United Arab Emirates plans to host a four-day parley that would focus on air and missile defense. The second annual conference, titled "Annual Air and Missile Defence Summit," was scheduled to begin on May 30 in Abu Dhabi and include senior U.S. and other military commanders.

"With the Middle East region being key to the global security, this summit aims to bring together all the key players to discuss the roadmap towards an integrated air defence strategy." conference director Grace Chng said.

Organizers said the conference would focus on technology, interconnectivity and interoperability between military and industry. They said the agenda would discuss a strategy to develop and deploy air and missile defense systems.

One of the keynote speakers was identified as Lt. Gen. Mike Hostage, chief of the U.S. Air Force Central Command. Hostage was expected to discuss U.S. plans to help develop an air and missile defense umbrella for Gulf Cooperation Council states.

Jordan, a key ally of the GCC, would also attend the conference. Organizers identified one of the presenters as Brig. Gen. Hani Odeh Awad Al Hajaj, director of Jordan's Air Defense Command.

The parley would also contain a large presence of industry executives. Organizers said representatives from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Rheinmetall and Thales were expected to attend.