The changing security dynamics in East Asia with special reference to Japan will be the focus of the 7th Asian Security Conference (ASC) to be held here from Thursday.

External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh will inaugurate the three-day meet, being held under the aegis of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA). Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee will deliver the concluding address.

Shigeru Ishiba, a former minister of state for defence of Japan, will address a special session Friday. More than 30 foreign delegates have confirmed their participation, IDSA said.

Competing territorial claims, cross-Straits tensions between China and Taiwan, North Korea's involvement in a missile-for-nuclear weapons technology swap with Pakistan, the possibility of the mating of the nuclear and terrorist threats and the changing role of the US from "allies alone" to one of "allies and friends" are some of the topics that would be deliberated at the conference.

The rise of China and the likelihood of Beijing seeking to expand its influence across the grand chessboard of international politics will also be discussed.