On December 1, Federica Mogherini will give a lecture on ‘How to keep Europe united in times of geo-political turmoil?’. Federica Mogherini is the Rector of the College of Europe and former High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission (2014-2019). More information on the lecture can be found here.

On Wednesday 30 November, Martin Selmayr will give a keynote speech about ‘The EU’s future: What reforms are possible between the Conference on the Future of Europe and the 2024 European Parliament elections?’ in the premises of the province Flemish Brabant in Leuven.

Martin Selmayr is former head of cabinet of Commission President Juncker, former Secretary-General of the European Commission and currently representative of the European Commission in Austria. He is also professor of EU Law at the universities of Saarbrücken, Passau, Krems and Vienna. More information on the lecture, including on compulsory registration, can be found here.

The war in Ukraine has changed everything, also for the EU and its many competences. But what has been the effect on its institutions and its political system?

As Secretary-General of the European Parliament and guest professor at the Public Governance Institute, Mr. Klaus Welle will share his views by giving a lecture and answering questions from the audience. More information on the lecture can be found here.

The Heads of State and Government of the Member States of the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU) met in February 2022 for the 6th EU-AU Summit. Its final declaration ‘Two Unions, a joint vision’ attempts to relaunch the interregional partnership, which is marked by deep historical, political, economic and security connections. This international conference will explore the common challenges and opportunities for Africa-EU relations in the areas of sustainable development, culture, security, and social interactions by bringing together senior policymakers, civil society and academics. It will discuss the multiple recalibrations in global governance, including the growing international interest in Africa by actors such as China, US, Turkey, and Russia, to assess to what extent the AU and EU are building a partnership that is future-proof and capable of bridging policy divides.

Program
12:00 - Lunch Reception

12:45 - Welcome and Introduction to the Conference, by Prof. Jan Wouters, KU Leuven
 

13:00 - Keynote by H.E. Mrs. Sena Siaw-Boateng, Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana to Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Mission to the European Union

Short reaction by Prof. Zdzisław Mach, Jagellonian University Krakow

13:30-14:30 | Panel 1 | Aligning Development, Climate, Trade and Culture in Africa-EU Relations

Moderator: Prof. Meriem Agrebi, Université de Carthage 

Prof. Marleen Dekker, African Studies Centre, Leiden University

Mr. Koen Doens, Director General of DG for International Partnerships, European Commission

Prof. Olga Kisseleva, University of Paris 1 Sorbonne 

Prof. Hezron Makundi, University of Dar es Salaam

Prof. Shumey Berhie Teshome, University of Addis Ababa

14:50-15:50 | Panel 2 | Peace, Security and Human Rights in Africa-EU Relations

Moderator: Prof. Łucja Piekarska-Duraj, Jagiellonian University Krakow

Prof. Riham Bahi, Cairo University

Ms. Rita Laranjinha, Director for Africa, European External Action Service

Prof. Roch Mongbo, Université d'Abomey-Calavi

Prof. Ukertor Moti, University of Abuja

Ms. Lisa Musiol, Senior EU Research and Advocacy Analyst, International Crisis Group
 

16:20-17:20 | Panel 3 | Challenges and Opportunities for Africa-EU Relations in Global Governance

Moderator: Prof. Christopher Nshimbi, University of Pretoria

Prof. Nadine Abdalla, The American University in Cairo

Dr. Petra Debusscher, University of  Ghent

Mr. Geert Laporte, European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM)

17:40 - Recalibrating EU-Africa Relations

Keynote by H.E. Ms Tokozile Xasa, Ambassador of the Republic of South Africa to Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Mission to the European Union
Chaired by Prof. Patrick Develtere, KU Leuven

Short reaction by H. E. Johan Swinnen, Honorary Ambassador for Belgium and Goodwill Ambassador for PAES - Platform for Africa-European Studies

18:15 - Conference Reception

Theme

A paradox lies at the heart of today’s global governance. On the one hand, the ongoing globalization process and increasing intertwinement of States, together with the intrinsically transnational nature of many challenges, result in an ever deepening connectivity, which has the potential for, and often does lead to, new dynamics of multilateral cooperation in international law. On the other hand, though, we see new forms of contestation by a variety of States – emerging powers, countries from the Global South, recently even the US and the UK – against established principles, norms and institutions of international law. In some cases this contestation has triggered novel – but not necessarily inclusive – forms of cooperation, which contribute to the further development of international law, but also trigger new forms of contestation, especially by non-participants. In some cases, like the current Ukraine crisis, contestation takes a violent turn and involves military aggression, leading to yet other international responses and strengthened cooperation among various State and non-State actors.
The “contestation – cooperation paradox” is visible in many different fields of international law, from international trade law to international humanitarian law, space law and the law of international organizations. But is it truly a new phenomenon? Has international law not always oscillated between cooperation and contestation, the latter especially by new(er) members of the international community? Do we witness a new form of realpolitik, where States seek the most efficient way to serve their interests, sometimes even through a revival of military aggression? Are we seeing the emergence of new types of international instruments, forms of cooperation and solidarity that reflect changing normative preferences of States? Or are these the signs of a international rule of law in decline? This conference aims at addressing these questions, by looking at four different fields of international law – international trade law, institutional law, humanitarian law and space law – and by inviting experts from both academia and practice.

You can find the programme of the conference here

Online and physical event

The European Union has mobilised multiple tools of its external action in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, most notably a multitude of sanctions. These restrictive measures, currently five sanctions packages, are “designed to weaken Russia’s economic base, depriving it of critical technologies and markets, and significantly curtailing its ability to wage war”.

At this first ENGAGE roundtable, Ana Hernández Sierra, Viktor Szép and Jan Wouters will discuss how the EU uses sanctions to respond to violations of international law and threats to European security. The panellists will shed light on the sanctions’ rationale, their place in EU foreign policy and the question of their impact and effectiveness as well as the challenges of the Union’s decision-making processes and the coordination with its international partners. The panel will be moderated by Gustavo Müller.

Bio

A lawyer by training, Mr. Rodolphe Munoz has worked for several international organisations. He has been for 15 years at the European Commission working on different legal issues. Currently, he is responsible for the implementation of the Space Situational Awareness (SSA) component of the EU Space Regulation. This comprises Space Surveillance and Tracking, Space Weather, and Near Earth Objects. Mr. Munoz was in charge of drafting the EU’s recent Joint Communication on a European Approach to Space Traffic Management (STM). Currently, he is following up on the implementation of the ten actions contained in the STM Communication.

The war in Ukraine has shaked the EU and its geopolitical ambitions.

How should we understand this ‘Whatever It Takes’ moment and what is to be expected? As Secretary-General of the European Parliament and guest professor at the Social Sciences Faculty, Mr. Klaus Welle, will share his views on the current state of affairs in Europe.

Programme

14.00 Guest lecture by Klaus Welle 14.30 Discussion with Els Van Hoof (President of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives) and Dumitru Malcoci (KU Leuven Master of European Studies alumnus from Moldova)

15.00 Q&A with the audience

15.30 Coffee and cake

The event is open to everyone - particularly students, staff and alumni of the KU Leuven as well as donators of the Wilfried Martens Fund – but registration is obligatory. Attendance is free of charge. In return we kindly ask participants to support the students’ Ukraine solidarity campaign www.student4student.be.

More info here on SG Klaus Welle and the Wilfried Martens Fund.

Abstract

The webinar looks into the diverse approaches, models and solutions for partnerships in the European space sector and discusses them from a legal perspective. The space sector traditionally builds upon a close interaction between public and commercial stakeholders. However, both space policymakers and industry do not stop to call for a new ways of partnerships. In view of NewSpace, industry namely calls for anchor tenancy commitments from public clients. The webinar starts from a space policy perspective, then identifies the different partnership approaches, categorizes and compares them and provides legal background to each of them.

Short Bio

Dr Ingo Baumann is partner of BHO Legal, a boutique technology law firm based in Cologne, Germany and one of Europe´s leading space law firms. Ingo has more than 20 years of professional experience in the space industry. He wrote his PhD at the Cologne Institute of Air and Space Law on the international law of satellite communications. Before establishing BHO Legal, he was legal adviser within the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), becoming later the Head of the DLR Galileo Project Office, and CEO of DLR GfR mbH, the operating company of DLR for the German Galileo Control Centre. He is advising ministries, space agencies, research organisations, universities and companies of all types involved in large public space programmes as well as commercial space activities across all application areas. His expertise covers international and national space law, international and national telecommunications law, procurement law, R&D law, IT law and all types of space industry contracts. Over the years, Ingo has been involved in numerous large public space programs such as Galileo, Copernicus, EDRS, or SatcomBW and he is closely supporting several NewSpace companies in their business development.
Ingo Baumann is member of the International Institute of Space Law (IISL), the European Centre for Space Law (ECSL), the Space Law Committee of the International Bar Association (IBA) and various other professional space industry organisations. He is co-editor of the upcoming Routledge Handbook of Commercial Space Activities, column editor of “GNSS & the Law” in InsideGNSS and regular speaker at space industry conferences.

Moderator: Ms. Giulia Pavesi (Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies)

Two weeks after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the heads of state and government of the EU gathered in Versailles on 10-11 March 2022 for an informal meeting. On this occasion, EU leaders engaged in ‘bolstering their defence capabilities, reducing their energy dependencies and building a more robust economic base’. They agreed to significantly increase defence expenditures (without however specifying an amount) and to bolster defence joint-projects and procurement schemes in order to develop the necessary and sometimes missing strategic capabilities. They also set the objective to ‘phase out European dependency on Russian gas, oil and coal imports as soon as possible’ by increasing imports of LNG from other markets, improving energy efficiency and accelerating investments in renewable energy. Finally, the Versailles Declaration reiterates the need for reducing strategic dependencies on critical raw materials, semi-conductors, digital technologies, and essential medical products and foodstuff. However, EU leaders remained divided on the implementation of a new resilience scheme (on the model of the Covid-19 pandemic recovery plan NextgenerationEU) to boost new investments in renewable energy and defence projects.

The search for strategic autonomy and sovereignty has gained momentum at the EU level with the deterioration of US-China relations. The Covid-19 pandemic and now the war in Ukraine have made EU strategic autonomy even more compelling, as the Versailles Declaration emphasizes.  However these objectives raise significant challenges because of numerous structural weaknesses of the EU, notably the reluctance of Member States to transfer industrial policy tools to a supranational level, but also the absence of an esprit de corps among industrialists in light of the rivalries between national business elites, the lack of centralized power over the internal market and Europe’s technological dependence on the US.

To discuss these challenges faced by the EU, Egmont, the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies of KU Leuven, the Institute for European Studies of UCLouvain Saint-Louis have gathered a panel of academics that have been analysing these challenges in recent research projects. The panel will assess to what extent the new EU strategies to serve the Union’s sovereignty and economic robustness goals depart from the EU’s traditional industrial policy approach, such as the Lisbon Strategy or Europe 2020. The panel will also discuss the structural differences between EU, China and US industrial and technological policy schemes as well as attempt to present various scenarios regarding the future of Europe’s strategic sovereignty.

A panel of academic experts chaired by Francois Roux
(Senior Advisor on European Affairs at Egmont)

Speakers :

Jean-Louis de Brouwer (Egmont)

Jean-Christophe Defraigne (IEE UCLouvain Saint Louis)

Patricia Nouveau (CEFIR ULg & UCLouvain)

Edoardo Traversa (UCLouvain)

Jan Wouters (GGS KULeuven)

Dimitri Zurstrassen (Sorbonne University  & UCLouvain)

EU Strategic Sovereignty and Industrial Policy after Versailles

Abstract

Europe boasts a strong space sector. This is largely the legacy of successful space programmes, particularly those on satellite navigation and Earth observation, mostly built on public support. However, the space sector is undergoing unprecedented transformation and development on a global scale. Major technology advancements, a new entrepreneurial spirit and a renewed policy focus have put the space sector under the spotlight on the global innovation stage. Such rapid and constant transformation calls for new approaches to funding and supporting space ventures.
In this lecture, we will discuss the recent trends in the European space sector and the obstacles that European space companies face when they seek financing. We will also look at potential solutions that may help improve access of European space companies to funding sources. We will talk about synergies between public and private funding, and discuss in detail how EU funds could be deployed to attract private investment and otherwise catalyse the development of the sector.
We will conclude the lecture with an overview of how the European Investment Bank and European Investment Fund are supporting the European space sector: we will present the available funding programmes of the EIB and EIF and what companies can benefit from them. We will also explain advisory and other non-financial means of support of the European space ecosystem. Finally, we will provide a glimpse of the upcoming funding programmes that EIB and EIF are currently discussing with our partners at the European Commission.

Short Bio

Shiva Dustdar has over 28 years of experience in the financial industry working for large private and public institutions in New York, London and Luxembourg. Since joining EIB in 2003, she has worked in risk management, lending and investing in innovative companies and currently heads the Innovation Finance Advisory (IFA) Division in the EIB. IFA provides financial advice to public and private entities, performing market studies and developing new financial products to meet the financing needs in green, digital, gendersmart and health-related areas.
She started her career in 1993 at J.P. Morgan Investment Banking in New York working in M&A, Project Finance and Emerging Markets before joining Fitch Rating Agency in 1999 to set up its European High Yield rating business.
Shiva holds a BA in Economics from Columbia University and an Executive MBA from London Business School (LBS). She is a regular speaker on innovation and impact financing, gender smart investing, digital and green financing and actively engaged in networks that promote sustainable and mission oriented financing..

While they share strong historical, economic, and cultural roots, the United States of America and Europe represent different societies that are in constant evolution. This evening debate brings together four prominent Belgian journalists who have been professionally and passionately reporting and commenting on American and European news for many years. Led by KU Leuven’s American Politics Professor Bart Kerremans, they will engage, in interaction with students, in a discussion why America is not Europe, and ever less so. They will focus on approaches to power, force, sovereignty, and the role of government in society.

PROGRAM
Doors open : 18.30

Welcoming Words (19.00 - 19.05)
Ambassador Dirk Wouters, former Ambassador of Belgium to the United States of America, Co-Chair America Europe Fund, KU Leuven

Panel Discussion (19.05 - 20.30)

Moderation: Prof. Dr. Bart Kerremans, Professor on American Politics and Chair of the America Europe Fund, KU Leuven
Rik Van Cauwelaert, Political Analyst, Financieel Economische TijdGreet De Keyser, Journalist for VTM, based in Washington DCBert De Vroey, Journalist for VRTSteven De Foer, Journalist for De Standaard
Questions and Answers (20.30 - 21.00)

Reception and Music (21.00 - 22.00)

Organisers: The Centre for European Studies and the America Europe Fund of KU Leuven

Welcoming Words (18.00-18.10)
Prof. dr. Kolja Raube, Director of the Centre for European Studies and Senior Member Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies, KU Leuven

Opening Remarks (18.10-18.30)
H.E. Ambassador Willem van de Voorde, Permanent Representative of Belgium to the European Union

Panel Discussion (18.30-19.30)
Dealing with Immediate and Long-term Security Crises in Times of Global Contestation

Moderation: Ambassador Dirk Wouters, former Ambassador of Belgium to the United States of America, Co-Chair America Europe Fund, KU Leuven

• Ms. Ruth Bajada, Head of Unit United States and Canada, European External Action Service

• Dr. Gerrard Quille, Head of Unit, Secretariat Sub-Committee on Security and Defence, European Parliament

• Prof. dr. Garret Martin, School of International Service, Co-Director Transatlantic Policy Center, American University

• Prof. dr. Tom Casier, Director of the Global Europe Center, University of Kent at Canterbury

• Prof. dr. Karolina Pomorska, Jean Monnet Chair, Institute of Political Science, Leiden University

Debate, Question and Answers (19.30-20.00)

Reception (20.00-20.45): Lobby Arts Faculty

With the tabling of the proposed amendments to the Hong Kong Extradition Law in 2019, the subsequent adoption of the National Security Law in 2020 and the recent electoral reforms in 2021, the debate about the continuing existence of democratic civil liberties in Hong Kong has come to the fore. Through the application of the National Security Law, a crackdown has already been witnessed vis-à-vis human rights defenders, politicians, and journalists. This crackdown has also resulted in reinvigorating the debate about extradition treaties entered into with China given concerns about human rights abuses and corruption of the judiciary once one becomes the subject of Chinese criminal investigations. That the implications of Chinese extradition practices have become a concern for the EU and its Member States is proven by, amongst other examples, (i) the emerging case law involving extradition cases and (ii) the EU’s new EU-China strategy (2021/2037(INI)). Indeed, following the landmark ruling in 2019 by Sweden’s Supreme Court to bar extradition to China, also on human rights grounds, further case law in EU Member States has emerged involving extradition cases with China, such as in Poland and the Czech Republic. Recently, the European Parliament also adopted its new EU-China strategy in which it calls on Member States with an extradition treaty with China to suspend such extraditions in the event of human rights associated risks.

This EUPLANT panel aims to discuss (i) the current stance in the European Union towards extradition treaties with China and (ii) how extradition litigation has recently materialized in Europe.

Prof. Dr. Tobias Lenz (German Institute for Global and Area Studies, Professor of International Relations at the Leuphana University Lüneburg, Germany) joins the GLOBE Webinar Series to discuss his new book Interorganizational Diffusion in International Relations: Regional Institutions and the Role of the European Union (Oxford University Press, 2021). Prof. Dr. Kolja Raube (KU Leuven) as the dicussant will then offer some reflections before an audience Q&A.

About the book: How and under what conditions does the EU shape processes of institution building in other regional organizations? This book develops and tests a theory of interorganizational diffusion in international relations that explains how successful pioneer organizations shape institutional choices in other organizations by affecting the institutional preferences and bargaining strategies of national governments. Lenz argues that Europe’s foremost regional organization systematically affects institution building abroad, but that such influence varies across different types of organization. Mixing quantitative and qualitative methods, it shows how the EU institutionally strengthens regional organizations through active engagement and by building its own institutions at home. Yet the contractual nature of other regional organizations bounds this causal influence: EU influence makes an identifiable difference primarily in those organizations that, like the EU itself, rest on an open-ended contract. Evidence for these claims is drawn from the statistical analysis of a dataset on the institutionalization of 35 regional organizations from 1950 to 2017, as well as from single and comparative case studies on institutional creation and (non-)change in the SADC, Mercosur, ASEAN and NAFTA.

About the author: Prof. Dr. Tobias Lenz is Professor of International Relations at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies. His research focuses on international and regional governmental organizations, EU in global regionalism, international institutional complexity, institutional design and evolution, legitimacy and legitimation, and diffusion theories.

Discussant: Prof. Dr. Kolja Raube (KU Leuven)
Moderator: Alex Andrione-Moylan (KU Leuven)

Participation is free and the webinar can be joined from anywhere in the world.

Interested in 'US-EU Relations in Times of Global Change'? Attend the KU Leuven and American University Washington, DC hybrid event on December 2. 

 During the discussion interventions on both sides will address the current state of transatlantic relations, with a focus on many salient themes such as (but not excluded) to climate change, migration, rule of law, trade, and security.

The event will only be entirely on ZOOM. You can use the following link to enter at 7pm:

https://american.zoom.us/j/92114648271  

 Or register here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/au-leuven-transatlantic-forum-tickets- 214120569387. 

High-level lecture on the Transatlantic Community. Among its speakers, you will be able to get insights from the world re-known Prof. Dr. Pippa Norris from Harvard Univerisity; Prof. Dr. Peter Lievens from KU Leuven; Prof. Dr. Leen d’Haenens, ChairThe America Europe Fund; H.E. Dirk Wouters, former Ambassador of Belgium to the US and the EU, Co-Chair; Prof. Dr. Stephan Keukeleire from KU Leuven; Mr. Nicolas Berliner, Chargé d’Affaires, US Embassy in Belgium and Prof. Dr. Leen d’Haenens. More so, there will be a networking reception at the end of the event. 

If you are interested in this timely and high-level lecture, be at the Promotiezaal of the Universiteitshal (Naamsestraat 22, Leuven) on the 1st of December at 17:00 (15 minutes before it starts). Covid Safe Ticket and ID is needed to enter the hall. Wearing a facemask is mandatory. The lecture will also be streamed live.

Registration for attending the lecture in the Promotiezaal as well as for watching the streaming is required via this link.

Description:

On 15 September 2021, the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom announced the creation of AUKUS, a trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific region. Only a day later, the EU announced a new strategy towards the Indo-Pacific, aimed at strengthening its presence in a region that has become the centre of global affairs. The lack of strategic coordination between these actors, along with the cancellation of a submarine deal between France and Australia, have created immense challenges for the future of the transatlantic relationship at a moment when Europeans expected the new US administration to foster stronger cooperation. This webinar will try to make sense of these two high-profile diplomatic initiatives and explore how they impact the transatlantic relationship, Europe’s quest for strategic autonomy and its strategy towards China and the Indo-Pacific.

Full Program on https://mailchi.mp/ggs/transatlanticlecture_indo-pacific

The speakers will be: Ambassador Pierre Vimont (Carnegie Europe); Prof. Marianne Riddervold (Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley Institute of European Studies (USA); Dr. Steven Everts (Senior Advisor on strategy and communications at the European External Action Service) and Prof. Stephan Keukeleire ( Jean Monnet professor in European Foreign Policy, LINES). The event will be moderated by Gustavo Müller, Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies, KU Leuven.

interested? register in the ‘Source’ link!

This transatlantic dialogue focuses on the EU’s and the US’ positioning and action towards human rights and democracy in multilateral fora, such as the UN Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly. The conversation between the two experts starts from a reflection on the efforts of both actors in the United Nations and other global governance frameworks to promote human rights and democracy over the last years. They will also discuss challenges that both actors have faced and still face in this regard. Moreover, the discussion will cover initiatives of the EU and the US to work together towards the promotion of human rights and democracy. These include the EU’s ‘New EU-US agenda for global change’ and its ‘Global human rights sanction system’ and the US administration’s plans to rejoin the UN Human Rights Council and to host a Summit for Democracy.

Objectives of the workshop:

The Young Professionals Forum on EU diplomacy is organised by the University of Pisa in the context of the project EUDIPLO (2020-2023), “The European Union in International diplomatic relations”. The workshop is especially directed to diplomatic trainees, graduate and post graduate students interested in a career as civil servants within the diplomacy machinery of the EU and its Member States. We invited 12 early career professionals such as former Junior Professionals in Delegation (JPD) and/or former trainees who work (or have worked) at the EU delegations. The young professionals will present their experience at the EU delegations located in different regions of the world. We are particularly interested in giving visibility to the work that is carried out by the EU delegations in the world. Indeed, the EU delegations are less known than national Embassies. The workshop is intended to present the work that is carried out at the EU delegations to explain the diplomatic possibilities and challenges to those interested in a career in diplomacy. Both the European External Action Service and the Union delegations – and hence the European Union’s diplomatic institutional machinery – remain largely unknown to the public. Yet, the European Union not only has a worldwide network of more than 140 ‘embassies’, but at the same time it has assumed ‘state-like’ functions on the basis of the adoption of diplomatic rules that were originally created for states only. Many challenges do remain, but the deep and wide legal and policy powers – and the sheer size and universal network – of the European Union also offer opportunities that remain as of yet untapped. Academic and policy analyses have pointed to a great number of legal and political questions related to the developing role of the EU in international diplomacy. The Network EUDIPLO focuses on this central question: What are the internal and external constraints and opportunities for the European Union to further its ambitions as an international diplomatic actor? In dealing with this question, the Network aims to generate a stronger awareness on, and contribute to deeper insights with regard to, the European Union’s diplomatic activities throughout the world, in third States as well as at multilateral fora.