Solana, Dastis and Almunia among the participants in the International Seminar ‘A Union that adds up and conditioning neighbourhoods’

On Wednesday 24 September, the Association of European Journalists is organising a new edition of its seminar on Europe, entitled ‘A Union that adds value and neighbouring countries that impose conditions’, at the headquarters of the Fundación Diario Madrid (Calle Larra, 14). The event is being held in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation's Hablamos de Europa programme and is sponsored by ACS and Ferrovial.

The day will begin at 9:30 a.m. with welcoming remarks by Elena Rodríguez, Director General of Integration and Coordination of General EU Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ángeles Blanco, Vice-President of the Association of European Journalists and presenter of the midday news programme on Tele 5.

At 10:00 a.m., the first session will take place, ‘Forty years of Spain in the EU: from recipient to economic and intellectual contributor,’ with the participation of Joaquín Almunia, former Vice-President of the European Commission, and Ramón de Miguel, former Secretary of State for the EU. The debate will be moderated by Carlos Franganillo, Director of News at Telecinco.

The second session will begin at 11:45 a.m. with the title ‘End of indifference and activation of citizen engagement? Political union and strategic autonomy.’ Speakers will include Javier Solana, former High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy; Boleslaw Wozniak, Deputy Director General of the Strategy Department of the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Fidel Sendagorta, Spanish diplomat and former Director General of Foreign Policy; and writer Joan Llorach. Aurea Moltó, Director of REDElcano, will moderate.

The third session, at 3:45 p.m., will be entitled ‘Neighbours breaking ranks: what happened to the Visegrad Group's unity when they joined?’ and will feature Maciej Stasinski, journalist at Gazeta Wyborcza; Alfonso Dastis, former Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Alberto Navarro, diplomat and former Secretary of State for the EU. It will be moderated by Pilar Requena, director of Documentos TV at TVE.

The final session, ‘Conditioning neighbours: the EU border with Russia and exposed to the global South and its American ally,’ will be held at 5:00 p.m., with contributions from Javier Elorza, diplomat and former ambassador to Russia; Juan González Barba, former Secretary of State for the EU; and Marek Menkiszak, head of the Russian Department at the Centre for Eastern Studies in Poland. The session will be moderated by Emilia Pérez, director of International Affairs at the EFE Agency.

The aim of this event is to provide a space for reflection and debate on the present and future of the European Union, highlighting Spain's role in its development and analysing the challenges posed by its neighbours in an international context marked by uncertainty and geopolitical competition. Admission is free, subject to prior registration on the website of the Association of European Journalists.