Speakers

Tore O. Sandvik is Norway’s Minister of Defence, appointed in February 2025. A Labour Party politician with extensive experience at both regional and national levels, he served as County Mayor of Sør-Trøndelag and later Trøndelag from 2003 to 2023.

Sandvik has a strong track record in regional development, industry policy, and defence issues, and has held roles as State Secretary in key ministries as well as acting Minister of Climate and Environment in 2024.

As Minister of Defence, he focuses on strengthening national preparedness, allied cooperation, and Europe’s responsibility for its own security.

At the conference, Minister of Defence Tore O. Sandvik will deliver his keynote address.

Frode Ommundsen is a Major General in the Norwegian Armed Forces and Head of the Norwegian Home Guard (Heimevernet).

He has held key leadership roles in the Army, including in the Telemark Battalion and Panserbataljonen, and has operational experience from international missions in Bosnia, Kosovo, and Afghanistan.

Ommundsen also has advanced military education from institutions such as the NATO Defence College and the Royal College of Defence Studies in London, and assumed his current role in 2023, where he leads the development of Norway’s territorial defence capabilities.

Professor Katarzyna Zysk is Professor of International Relations and Contemporary History at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies (IFS), part of the Norwegian Defence University College, and one of Norway's foremost experts on Russian security and defence policy.

Her research focuses on Russian military strategy, nuclear deterrence, Arctic security, and the role of emerging technologies and AI in defence innovation. She has held senior leadership roles at IFS, been a visiting fellow at Stanford University, the University of Oxford, Sciences Po, and the US Naval War College, and regularly provides analysis and briefings to NATO, allied governments, and defence institutions.

At Forsvarskonferansen 2026, she will deliver a security policy briefing on the evolving strategic landscape shaping Europe and the transatlantic community. 

Mykyta Rozhkov leads international business development and strategic expansion at Frontline Robotics, a Ukrainian defence tech company building robotic systems for the battlefield.

He plays a key role in scaling Ukrainian defence innovation globally, including overseeing the Ukrainian operations of Quantum Frontline Industries (QFI), the first Ukrainian-German defence joint venture producing battlefield-proven Ukrainian technologies in Germany.

With deep expertise in strategic partnerships and marketing, defence market expansion, fundraising, Mykyta focuses on turning combat-proven technologies into scalable international defence capabilities.

Tor Grande is Rector at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).  He is the chairman of Universities Norway.   
 
He was Pro-Rector for Research and Dissemination in 2021 – 2023 and has previously been Vice-Dean for Research at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Head of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.  Grande is professor in chemistry and materials science and has broad experience with teaching, research, innovation, and collaboration with industry.  He has been visiting researcher at NIRIM, Japan and University of Rennes, France. He has been on sabbatical leave at the EPFL in Switzerland and the Northwestern University in the USA.  

Grande has extensive experience in research evaluation including ERC evaluation panels. 

Denys Horielov is International Partnerships Representative at the Ukrainian Council of Defence Industry, Ukraine’s largest private defence manufacturers’ association, bringing together more than 400 members across its ecosystem.

Alongside this role, Denys leads the Youth Defence Tech Cluster, an NGO connecting Ukrainian youth-led defence tech startups whose solutions are already being used on the frontline.

He brings valuable insight into Ukraine’s rapidly developing defence technology ecosystem and the growing role of young innovators in supporting Ukraine’s defence.

Major General Øyvind Johan Kvalvik is Deputy Director General of the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency - FMA, a position he has held since 2022.

He began his military career in the Norwegian Army in 1988 and has held a wide range of command and staff positions, including infantry, mechanized and Ranger Battalion commands. He has also served as Military Advisor to the Chief of Defence and held senior positions within the Norwegian Ministry of Defence.

His operational experience includes deployments with UNPROFOR, UNPREDEP, KFOR and ISAF, as well as service in NATO staff.

Major General Kvalvik is a graduate of the Norwegian Military Academy, the Norwegian National Staff College and the U.S. Army War College, where he holds master's degrees in Military Science and Strategic Studies.

Tomas Iver Hallem has served as County Mayor of Trøndelag since 2023, with broad experience from regional and local politics. He has a background in agriculture and industry and is a strong advocate for regional development, innovation, and cross-sector collaboration.

In recent years, Trøndelag has also established a sister-region relationship with Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine, strengthening ties and cooperation in a time of geopolitical tension.

At the Nordic Defence and Security Conference 2026, Hallem will officially open the conference and welcome delegates to Trøndelag, a region central to Norway’s industry, technology, and security preparedness.

Maja Solum is Executive Operations Manager at Ubiq Aerospace, a Norwegian dual-use technology company. With a background in international business and geopolitics, she works closely with the company’s leadership team to support Ubiq’s expansion into international defence and aerospace markets.

Built on Norwegian innovation and NASA engineering expertise, Ubiq Aerospace develops cutting-edge technologies to address some of the aerospace sector’s most demanding challenges. Its flagship solution is the world’s only autonomous, SWaP-optimized ice detection and protection system for unmanned aerial systems, with applications across the broader aviation industry. Ubiq is also developing its own synthetic aperture radar, further expanding its capabilities for advanced sensing and operations in demanding environments.

The company leverages advanced carbon composite technologies to enable innovations such as structural energy storage and radar systems, helping shape the future of resilient and high-performance aerospace solutions.