Globsec 2018 discussion. L-r: Czech PM Andrej Babiš, Slovak PM Peter Pellegrini, EC Vice-President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič. (source: TASR)
More than 1,300 guests and 150 speakers from over 60 countries will discuss the most pressing security issues at the GLOBSEC conference held in Bratislava on June 6-8.
“The 14th year will be a record one in several respects,” Róbert Vass, president of GLOBSEC, told the May 29 press conference.
GLOBSEC 2019
When: June 6-8
Where: various venues in Bratislava
Some numbers:
*1,300 guests
*150 speakers
*65 countries
*140 events
The biggest security conference in central Europe has invited several top politicians from various countries. Apart from Slovak President Andrej Kiska and PM Peter Pellegrini, also Czech PM Andrej Babiš will be present, together with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučič, President of Montenegro Milo Dunakovic, EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, US Senator Ron Johnson, and Secretary General of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Thomas Greminger.
“Events like GLOBSEC focus on making our society better prepared for the turbulent and fundamental changes the globalising world is facing,” said Slovak diplomat and former ambassador to Washington and Budapest, Rastislav Káčer.
Five key topics
Participants will discuss various topics within five main streams: European integration, defence and security in the transatlantic sphere, technology as a benefactor and a threat, sustainable societies and, challenges to democracy and liberal order.
The European Integration stream will try to answer questions like how EU’s political landscape will change after the EP elections and the consequences, or what should be the priorities of the new European Commission. They will also seek answers to what vision CEE can offer based on its unique strengths, experiences and perspectives, or how the EU can maintain good relations with Western Balkan countries as well as with the UK post-Brexit. Its chair will be Slovak Foreign Affairs Minister Miroslav Lajčák.
The Defence and Security stream will focus on whether Europe’s quest for defence autonomy is a source of a cure or a symptom of disease for NATO, whether there is enough momentum to break out of the stalemates in Ukraine and South Caucasus to improve relations with Russia. It will also try to answer questions like whether we need new tools for crisis prevention and peace building and if we are equipped to face hybrid and reemerging nuclear threats. It will be chaired by John R. Allen, a retired US Marine Corps four-star general and former commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and US Forces in Afghanistan.
The Digital Technology stream will deal with questions like how we structure public-private partnership to harness inescapable technological progress for the benefit of our societies, how states can protect and project their interests in the borderless cybersphere, whether data protection will become a competition issue for states and companies alike, and what humanity’s place in the digital world of the future will be. It will be chaired by Marietje Schaake, a Dutch politician and MEP.
The Sustainability and Global Economy stream will delve into the blueprints for the adaptation of health-care and welfare systems for the ageing population of developed countries, and how we can combat climate change without compromising economic progress. It will be chaired by Maithreyi Seetharaman, an economic and business journalist and television anchor, a veteran of global business news.
The Democracy & Disconnect stream will answer questions like the principles upon which the transatlantic partnership and global order of the future will be based, and how democracies should make full use of the AI and its disruptive potential for the benefit of its citizens. It will be chaired by Michael Chertoff, an American attorney who was the second United States Secretary of Homeland Security, serving under President George W. Bush.
Top speakers
Timothy Garton Ash
Professor of European Studies at University of Oxford. He is the author of 10 books on contemporary history and political writing, which have explored many facets of the history of Europe over the last half-century. He also writes a column on international affairs in the Guardian, which is widely syndicated, and is a regular contributor to the New York Review of Books, amongst other journals.
Michel Barnier
EU Chief Negotiator for the United Kingdom exiting the EU. He has been a minister in several governments in France. From 1999 to 2004, he was European Commissioner responsible for Regional Policy and Institutional Reform. In 2007, the newly elected French President Nicolas Sarkozy appointed him Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries. In June 2009, Barnier led the French campaign for the European elections and a few months later he was appointed European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services. It is in this capacity that he proposed and built the Banking Union, with the support of President José Manuel Barroso.
Philip T. Reeker
Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs. He has been a long-time American diplomat.
Fernando Arias Gonzáles
Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPWC) in The Hague. He was appointed to the post in December 2017 by the Conference of the States Parties at its 22nd session. He began his four-year term of office in July 2018. Prior to his appointment as OPCW Director-General, he served as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Spain to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as well as Permanent Representative to the OPCW from 2014-2018.
Kang Kyung-wha
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea. She was appointed to the post, as the very first woman, in June 2017. Prior to assuming her post, she served as Senior Advisor on Policy to the United Nations Secretary-General from February to May 2017, Chief of the 9th United Nations Secretary-General’s Transition Team from October 2016 to February 2017, Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator and Assistant Secretary-General at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs from April 2013 to October 2016, and Deputy High Commissioner/Assistant Secretary-General at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from January 2007 to March 2013.
Marietje Schaake
A Dutch politician, who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2009. She is a member of D66, part of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) political group. She is Coordinator on the International Trade committee, where she is the ALDE spokesperson on transatlantic trade and digital trade.
Margaret Peterlin
Senior Vice President for Global External and Public Affairs at A&T. She has recently served as the third-ranking official at the US Department of State, as Chief of Staff to Secretary Rex Tillerson. Previously, she was as a global executive at Mars, Inc, co-led a large, Federal Agency, worked for both the Speaker, and the Majority Leader, of the House of Representatives, clerked for a U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, and served as a commissioned officer in the US Navy.
Shamina Singh
Founder and President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. She has spent her career building partnerships across the public, private and non-profit sectors to support positive social and economic impact. As Executive Vice President of Sustainability and President of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, she is responsible for advancing equitable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world. Previously, she was Mastercard’s Global Director of Government Services and Solutions, where she worked to digitize social subsidy programs in over 40 countries.
Youba Sokona
Vice-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in Geneva. He is currently Special Advisor for Sustainable Development at the South Centre. With over 35 years of experience addressing energy, environment and sustainable development in Africa, Sokona has been at the heart of numerous national and continental initiatives. He coordinated the scoping, framing and development of the “Africa Renewable Energy Initiative”. Reflecting his status, Sokona was elected Vice-Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in October 2015.
