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International conflicts have increasingly extended beyond physical confrontation into the cyber domain, as illustrated by the South China Sea disputes since the early 2010s. Vietnam and the Philippines, two of the most vocal claimants, eventually established dedicated cyber commands in 2017 and 2024 respectively, signalling that national sovereignty now depends as much on defending cyberspace as on protecting physical territory.
Yet the timelines present a puzzle. Despite facing similar external threats, Vietnam's command preceded the Philippines' by seven years, with the former prioritising regime-threatening cyber activity and the latter initially focused on combating cybercrime.
What explains this divergence, and what does it tell us about how states translate external threats into institutional responses?
To unpack this question, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) Malaysia, in collaboration with IKMAS Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, is pleased to host:
Dr. Bich Tran
Research Fellow, Military Transformations Programme, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Our speaker will offer a comparative analysis of how differing alignment choices, strategic cultures, and domestic institutions produced divergent pathways toward establishing cyber commands in the Philippines and Vietnam.
We invite you to join the conversation:
📌 GeoGeo Lab Talk #9: From Maritime to Cyber Conflicts: The Philippines' and Vietnam's Responses
📅 7 August 2026 (Friday)
⏱️ 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM
📍Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (KAS), Unit 1103, Level 11, Uptown 2, No. 2 Jalan SS 21/37, Damansara Uptown, 47400 Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
🔗 RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/gCg-rDem
Agenda
Download the agenda: 1785289542042 (1).jpg
