November 16, 2020, by abrierley

Ministry of Defence/DSTL placement and USSTRATCOM Deterrence Symposium

Ministry of Defence/DSTL placement and USS TRATCOM Deterrence Symposium

by Maryam Zafar 3rd year UG Politics and International Relations

Last year I had the incredible opportunity to undertake a 10-week placement through the Faculty of Social Science’s placement program at the UK Defence Science and Technology Lab (DSTL). Iresearched and wrote a paper on deterrence strategy as part of this placement. Despite finishing this placement last December, I am still quite involved in the UK Deterrence and Assurance Academic Alliance (UK DAAA).

Over the last two weeks, I have presented my research at two separate conferences; I was a panellist at the the UK DAAA conference and more recently at the United States Strategic Command Annual Deterrence Symposium.

The Symposium is high-level conference which attracts government, military, and academic experts every year to discuss matters of global security. I felt extremely honoured to have been the youngest panellist and the only undergraduate student presenting my work to an audience of well-known experts. The session itself comprised of the 4 panellists including myself presenting our work for 10 minutes each, followed by a panel discussion and questions from the audience.

Normally panellists are flown out to the STRATCOM headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska to attend this two week-long symposium. Quite understandably, the entire event was virtual this year. Nonetheless, I was still able to network with policymakers and senior academics, making the event a great opportunity to meet people in this field.

I am extremely grateful for the UK DAAA’s continued support in guiding the next generation interested in national security and deterrence. My experience illustrates how many doors the placement program can open as all of these achievements are a product of my placement with the DSTL.

Here is the link to the panel, bio and list of other panel speakers https://stratcomds.digitellinc.com/stratcomds/live/7/page/74

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