On Friday, the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies hosted the US-Chile Defense Consultative Commission during its visit to National Defense University. The event included a tour of CHDS as well of a briefing by Director Richard D. Downie for Chilean Under Secretary of War Gonzalo García and Undersecretary of the Navy Carolina Echeverria, as well as other civilian and military defense staff. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Western Hemisphere Affairs Frank Mora and Brig. General David Fadok, director of policy and strategy for the U.S. Southern Command, headed the U.S. delegation accompanying the South American guests.

The Chilean delegation also included Rear Admiral Roberto Macchiavello, deputy chief, National Defense Staff; Rear Admiral Marcelo Barbieri, defense and naval attaché, Matias Undurraga, deputy director, International Security at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Colonel Leonardo Espinoza, director of International Affairs, National Defense Staff; Rodrigo Atria of the Ministry of Defense Advisory Committee, and Juan Esteban Montes, advisor to Under Secretary García.

The U.S. counterpart delegation included Captain Richard Goodwyn, defense and naval attaché, USDAO Chile, and Colonel (ret.) John Cope, senior research fellow at the NDU Institute for National Strategic Studies and founding director of CHDS. Center participants in the meeting included Deputy Director Ken LaPlante; Major General (ret.) John Thompson, dean of Students, Administration and Outreach; Dr. Michael Gold-Biss, associate dean for Academic Affairs; Dr. Oswaldo Jarrín, Ministry of Defense chair, and Dr. Craig Deare, professor of National Security Affairs.