Thursday, 23 November 2017, 13.30 – 18.00
European Endowment for Democracy
Rue de la Loi 34, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
The event will be followed by a cocktail reception.
The conference will critically assess the achievements of the Eastern Partnership policy, the effectiveness of its existing toolbox and whether it has brought about real change on the ground. Speakers will also look ahead to the Brussels Eastern Partnership summit and beyond and offer recommendations for calibrating the EU’s policy to tackle better the emerging trends and challenges in the region.
13.30 Registration
14.00 Welcome address: Jerzy Pomianowski, Director, European Endowment for Democracy
14.05 Opening speech: Linas Linkevičius, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Lithuania
14.30 Opening remarks:
- Natalia Yerashevich, Director of the Secretariat, Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum (EaP CSF)
- Zuzana Stuchlíková, Director of Brussels Office, EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy/Think Visegrad platform
14.45-16.15 Assessing policy performance: the Eastern Partnership on the eve of the Brussels summit
Where do we stand on democratization of the EaP countries? How successfully has the EU addressed the major challenges in the region? What are the major issues hindering the economic integration with the EU?
- Iskra Kirova, Senior Policy Analyst, Open Society European Policy Institute
- Dmytro Shulga, European Programme Director, International Renaissance Foundation
- Alexander Duleba, Director of the Research Centre of the Slovak Foreign Policy Association
- Timur Onica, Policy Officer, European Endowment for Democracy
- Ziya Guliyev, Chair, Center for Legal Initiatives, EaP CSF Steering Committee
Moderator: Věra Řiháčková, EaP CSF
16.15-16.30 Coffee break
16.30-18.00 Eastern Partnership Quo Vadis? Expectations and recommendations for the next steps
What are the major expectations from the EaP Summit? Can the EU respond more effectively to the major challenges in the region after the EaP Summit? Are there enough incentives (and conditions) for the partner countries to deliver the expected results?
- MEP Rebecca Harms, Euronest Co-Chair, European Parliament
- Vassilis Maragos, DG NEAR, European Commission (TBC)
- Vano Chkhikvadze, EU Integration Field Manager, Open Society Georgia Foundation
- Ján Cingel, Acting Head of European Neighbourhood Programme, GLOBSEC Policy Institute
- Boris Navasardyan, President, Yerevan Press Club, EaP CSF Steering Committee
Moderator: Adam Balcer, Think Visegrad platform
18.00-18.15 Concluding Remarks: Miriam Lexmann, Director of the EU Office, International Republican Institute
18.15 Cocktail reception
Please register by clicking here before 22 November 2017.