RAND and the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) convened an in-person Track II Dialogue on January 12, 2024, at ORF's office in New Delhi, India. ORF is a nonpartisan think tank that focuses on security, strategy, economy, development, energy, and global governance. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, this dialogue addressed Russian advanced conventional weapon proliferation and allowed participants to present perspectives on the security environment in Asia and how the war in Ukraine has changed this environment. The Track II Dialogue consisted of three panels of both RAND and ORF experts. The first panel discussed the impact of Russia's continued war in Ukraine on Russian weapon exports and the potential for China to benefit from countries' efforts to pivot away from Russian weapons. The second panel discussed India's decisions to import systems or develop systems indigenously. The final panel discussed the impact of the war in Ukraine on Asia and Asia-Pacific security broadly. These conference proceedings contain six papers — three each by RAND and ORF authors — that were written for this dialogue. This publication provides a summary of the event, conclusions drawn from the dialogue, and the full text of all six papers. It can help inform foreign and defense policy officials in both the United States and India who are responsible for U.S.-Indian relations, bilateral defense cooperation, and defense policy.

Over the past two decades, pandemic preparedness has proven to be critical to health, national, and economic security. Now, countries are investing billions of dollars in various pandemic preparedness tools, such as vaccines and broad-spectrum medical countermeasures (MCM), to address the threats arising from outbreaks. These tools not only offer protection against naturally occurring and accidental biological incidents but can also help provide some protection against deliberate biological attacks. Furthermore, pandemic preparedness has substantial economic implications for both the public and private sectors because of its connection with the biotechnology industry, an important component of the worldwide economy. With so many aspects of pandemic preparedness tied to public health, national security, and economic competition, understanding the key technology and policy trends of the major country stakeholders in this space provides valuable insights into pandemic preparedness gaps and ways of addressing them. This report provides a brief characterization of the trends and strategic implications associated with specific aspects of pandemic preparedness in the United States, China, and Russia. The authors discuss both technical and policy aspects of vaccine concepts and technologies, broad-spectrum MCM, and immunization facilitation.