Aug & Sep were busy months for ISOA:

On September 11-14, just prior to our Ukraine Conference, ISOA led a historic delegation to Kyiv, taking over two dozen executives to meet with key Ukrainian military and government leaders. This was the first time that ISOA has led a delegation of member companies into a country at war. Our purpose was to hear directly about their needs to first, win the war against Russia, and then for the requirements to rebuild their severely damaged infrastructure across the country. During the visit, we held five meetings total, starting with State Department officials from the US Embassy in Kyiv discussing military, economic, and development issues. Later we met with the Ministries of Defence, Economy, Infrastructure, and Strategic Industries.

Over 400 attendees joined ISOA on September 12-14 in Warsaw, Poland for our second annual Ukraine Conference, focusing on sustainment and rebuilding activities in Ukraine and Eastern Europe. Panel discussions covered logistics, demining and construction, law enforcement & rule of law, refugees, development, WPS, health & medical protection, contract support and more. We were honored to hear keynote speeches from Päivi Laine, Finnish Ambassador to Poland; COL Beth Behn, U.S. Army, Deputy Commander – Sustainment, Security Assistance Group – Ukraine, and Alona Verbytska, Advisor on Rights of Defenders, Office of the President, Ukraine.

On September 8, ISOA hosted “Mobility & Security Day in Southeast Europe” in Pristina, Kosovo. Around 120 attendees discussed opportunities for US contracting support in the region. Kosovo has recently doubled their defense and security budget. Attendees included the Minister of Trade, Industry and Entrepreneurship, the Minister of Defense, the Deputy Minister of Defense, the Deputy Minister of Interior, high level police and military officers as well as VIPS from Macedonia and Albania.

At the end of August, ISOA coordinated with the US Embassy in Berlin to bring together leading US and German companies in support of service and maintenance of military equipment donated to Ukraine. With their extensive network and logistical supply chain capabilities in Europe, German companies play a key role servicing this military equipment in Ukraine. ISOA and the US Embassy in Berlin will continue to hold these “Victory Through Sustainment” workshops as long as they are needed.

On September 19, ISOA held a webinar to introduce ISOA companies to doing business with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with a focus on setting up a business in Saudi Arabia, to ensure member companies are positioned for success in a market that is seeing a generational transformation. A representative from the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia (MISA) joined us for the discussion.

On September 20, ISOA hosted a WPS webinar titled “Women on the Frontline: Fighting for Democracy in Myanmar.” Women represent sixty-five percent of the pro-democracy movement challenging the military junta in Myanmar. This initiative aimed to magnify their voices, highlighting their unwavering dedication, contributions, and courage in the ongoing struggle against the coup. “Women on the Frontline: Fighting for Democracy in Myanmar” was presented in partnership with the Myanmar Policy Institute (MPI) perspectives. This webinar was conducted in Burmese and had simultaneous interpretation.

On September 28, ISOA’s East Africa Chapter came together for Sundowners with about 120 in attendance. Representatives from industry, NGOs and government were in attendance.

We look forward to seeing you soon!