European Union

Even as the UK’s “Brexit” referendum on EU membership dominated the headlines, the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini stuck to her plan of presenting the EU Global Strategy on Foreign and Security Policy at the European Council on June 28–29. On July 7, the DGAP welcomed Nathalie Tocci, Special Adviser to the EU High Representative, to present and discuss the strategy in an expert workshop with two panels.

One effect of the multiple crises currently facing the European continent is a change in the way the 47-member Council of Europe (CoE) is perceived. Beyond promoting common standards, charters, and conventions – and generally streamlining cooperation among European countries – how can a body as diverse as the CoE continue to enhance democratic stability across Europe?

What does the European Commission think about the Western Balkans? What are their expectations, and what challenges have to be faced? The TRAIN Programme’s 2016 Alumni Seminar enabled its participants to slip into the shoes of EU commissioners and gain a new perspective on the EU accession process.

How can fundamental rights be protected in EU candidate countries and in countries that are potential accession candidates? From June 21 to 25, TRAIN Programme participants addressed this question at the program’s midterm seminar in Berlin. The session provided the twelve think tank representatives from Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia with the opportunity to discuss their draft policy papers and meet with relevant actors from the German policy scene.

Wie denkt die Europäische Kommission über den Westbalkan? Mit welchen Erwartungshaltungen und Herausforderungen sieht sie sich konfrontiert? Das diesjährige Alumni-Seminar des TRAIN-Programms ermöglichte den Teilnehmenden, in die Schuhe von EU-Kommissaren zu schlüpfen und so eine neue Perspektive auf den Beitrittsprozess zu gewinnen.

On the morning of June 24, experts met at the DGAP to ponder the triumph of the Brexiteers and discuss the referendum’s extraordinary impact on Europe, the UK, and the world: longtime MEP Elmar Brok; Sarah Raine of the International Institute for Strategic Studies; Nicolai Ondarza of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs; Philip Oltermann of the Guardian's Berlin bureau; and the DGAP's Jana Puglierin. Click below to hear an audio file of their discussion