The consensus on the foundations of European security has gradually eroded in recent years. The current crisis in and around Ukraine that has challenged the fundamental principles of international order and European security has further aggravated these emerging divisions. In order to provide advice and recommendations on how to address these challenges, a “Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project” has been established by the Swiss 2014 OSCE Chairmanship. The current visit of the Panel to Brussels provides a good opportunity to discuss implications of the Ukraine crisis for the future of Europe and broader issues of European security as such.

(Photo credit: Egmont Institute)
PROGRAMME

16:00-16:10   Welcome

Ambassador Marc Otte, Director General, Egmont

Ambassador Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference and Chairperson of the Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project

 

16:10-16:30  Presentation of the work of the Panel of Eminent Persons

Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Member of the Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project

Prof. Sergey Karaganov, Member of the Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project

 

16:30-17:45  Discussion on the future of European Security

Ambassador Alain Le Roy, Secretary General, European External Action Service (EEAS)

Ambassador Marcel Pesko, Director of the Conflict Prevention Centre, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)

Sir Robert Cooper, European Council on Foreign Affairs, London School of Economics and Political Science

Members of the Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project 

 

17:45-18:00  Concluding remarks

Dr Barbara Haering, Member of the Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project

Dr Ian Lesser, Executive Director, Transatlantic Center, German Marshall Fund of the United States

Moderator

Prof. Dr. Sven Biscop

Director of “Europe in the World” Programme, Egmont

BACKGROUND

 The Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project consists of the following members:

• Wolfgang Ischinger (Germany): Chairman of the Munich Security Conference, Chairperson primus inter pares of the Panel
• Dora Bakoyannis (Greece): Member of Greek Parliament, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office (2009)
• Tahsin Burcuo?lu (Turkey): Former Ambassador
• Ivo H. Daalder (United States): President of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Former Ambassador
• Oleksandr Chalyi (Ukraine): President of Grant Thornton, Former First Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs
• Vaira Vike-Freiberga (Latvia): President of the Club de Madrid, Former President
• Jean-Marie Guéhenno (France): President of International Crisis Group, Former UN Under-Secretary-General
• Barbara Haering (Switzerland): Director of econcept Inc., Former Member of Parliament
• Sergi Kapanadze (Georgia): Director of Georgia’s Reforms Associates, Former Deputy Foreign Minister
• Sergey A. Karaganov (Russia): Honorary Chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy
• Malcolm Rifkind (United Kingdom): Former Member of Parliament, Former Foreign Secretary
• Adam Daniel Rotfeld (Poland): Professor, Former Foreign Minister
• Teija Tiilikainen (Finland): Director of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, Former State Secretary
• Kassym-Jomart Tokayev (Kazakhstan): Chairman of the Senate of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister of Kazakhstan; Former Under-Secretary-General of the UN and Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva
• Ivo Viskovi? (Serbia): Professor, Former Ambassador

The Panel of Eminent Persons on European Security as a Common Project was launched at the OSCE Ministerial Council in Basel in December 2014. It was commissioned by the Swiss 2014 Chairmanship, in close co-operation with the incoming Serbian 2015 and German 2016 Chairmanships. The Panel consists of 15 eminent personalities with long-standing practical expertise in European security in all its dimensions from all OSCE regions. It has been tasked to prepare the basis for an inclusive and constructive security dialogue across the Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian regions, and to reflect on how to re-build trust to enhance peace and security in the OSCE area on the grounds of the Helsinki Final Act and the Charter of Paris. In this context, the Panel shall produce two reports: an Interim Report on lessons learned for the OSCE from its engagement in Ukraine, and a Final Report on the broader issues of security in Europe and the OSCE area at large.