The Inter-American Defense Board is the military advisory branch of the Organization of American States. Vice Admiral Gonzalo Rios Polastri of Peru, Chairman of Delegates, greeted the students and emphasized the important collaborative efforts the Board has developed with its Caribbean partners. Vice Chairman General Jaime Gonzalez of Mexico presented a 45 minute brief on the Board’s mission and programs.

Participants engage in a Q&A session in the Simon Bolivar Room

At the Organization of American States, the students toured the historic facilities including visits to the Hall of the Americas and the Hall of Heroes. Students took seats in the main plenary session at the delegates’ table and had a long Q&A session with a representative from office of the Chief of Staff. Following the tour of the building, Ambassador Adam Blackwell, the Chairman of the Secretariat of Multidimensional Security, spoke frankly with the students of the security dilemmas in the hemisphere and the OAS efforts to address them.