Secretary Hegseth’s First Shangri-La Dialogue Speech: Why It Matters—and What to Watch For

Chris Estep

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For years, the main stage at the Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD) has given US defense secretaries an annual opportunity to describe US strategy in the Indo-Pacific, highlight important initiatives with allies and partners, and call out emerging challenges to regional stability—and all before an audience of senior defense and military officials convened by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Singapore.

This Saturday’s speech by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth—his first appearance at the SLD since being confirmed—will be unusually important for two primary reasons.

First, Hegseth’s remarks will likely survey the Department of Defense’s latest, most comprehensive public laydown of US defense priorities in the region, and for the first time since the second Trump administration took office.

In March, the Washington Post claimed that the secretary has issued interim strategic guidance for the Pentagon. While that document reportedly discussed US defense priorities in the Indo-Pacific, an unclassified version has not been released publicly. That same month, Hegseth traveled to the Indo-Pacific for the first time as secretary of defense, but his public remarks primarily affirmed the US alliance with each host country. Finally, earlier this month, the Pentagon announced that Hegseth has directed the development of a new National Defense Strategy that, among other priorities, should emphasize “deterring China in the Indo-Pacific” and “increasing burden-sharing with allies and partners around the world.” However, Hegseth established August 31 as the department’s deadline for providing him with a final draft.

As a result, Hegseth’s remarks should give observers their clearest window yet into how the Pentagon under his leadership is thinking about the Indo-Pacific.

More importantly, Hegseth’s plenary speech in Singapore will also probably clock in as the longest public pronouncement so far by any cabinet official in the second Trump administration about US objectives in the Indo-Pacific.