The Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas (CDMA) is a multilateral policy international meeting initiated in 1995 and consisting of the Ministries of Defense of the hemisphere in order to promote mutual understanding, analysis, discussion and exchange of ideas and experiences in the field of Defense and Security or any other interaction mechanism that allows achieving the same. Conference cycles are two years in a member country assumes the presidency of the same. The function of maintaining the institutional memory has been assigned to the Inter - American Defense Board, an entity of the Organization of American States.