“CANDIDATE COUNTRIES: WITH OR WITHOUT YOU?”

Draft Program (last update 1 April 2011)

 13:00 – 13:15 Welcome speeches
 Mr. Florent Parmentier, Scientific Advisor, Master in European Affairs, Sciences Po
 Mr. Renaud Soufflot de Magny, Deputy Head of the European Commission Representation in France
 13:15 – 13:50 Opening Speech by Keynote Speaker
 Mr. Miroslav Lajčák, EEAS Managing Director for Europe and Central Asia
 13:50 – 15:20 PANEL I: PERCEPTIONS OF EUROPE

What do the citizens of EU member states think about the candidates for EU membership? What do the non-EU Europeans think about the EU? Is Turkey doomed to receive negative polls forever? How can be Europeans convinced about the benefits of enlargement? What role does “European identity” play in the process of EU enlargement? Moderator: Mr. Christian Lequesne, Director, CERI, Sciences Po
 H.E. Ms. Berglind Asgeirsdottir, Appointed Ambassador of Iceland to France, Spain, Italy and Andorra; Permanent Representative of Iceland to the OECD, UNESCO and the Council of Europe (TBC)
 Ms. Sylvie Goulard, Member of the European Parliament (ALDE, FR), former advisor to the President of the European Commission
 Mr. Jean Dominique Guiliani, Chairman, Robert Schuman Foundation
 Mr. Goran Štefanić, Deputy Head of Mission, Croatian Embassy in Paris

Discussion

15:20 – 15:30 Coffee Break

 15:30 – 17:00 PANEL II: FILLING THE GAP? A STRATEGY FOR THE BALKANS

Does the EU want to democratize or only stabilize the Western Balkans? Are the EU’s individual and regional approaches towards the ex-Yugoslav countries balanced in the right way? Is the carrotand- stick strategy applied in Central Europe effective in the Western Balkans? Would the enlargement still be interesting for the EU if Greece was bordering Slovenia?

Moderator: Ms. Olga Spaiser, PhD Candidate, CEE, Sciences Po
 Mr. Zoltán Fejes, First Counsellor – European Affairs, Hungarian Embassy in Paris
 Ms. Gaëlle Pério, journalist, author, Robert Schuman Foundation
 Mr. Vincent Rey, European Commission, DG Enlargement, Deputy Head of Unit A2 – Information and Communication
 Ms. Natasha Wunsch, Research Fellow, German Council on Foreign Relations

Discussion

 17:00 – 17:10 Coffee Break

 17:10 – 18:40 PANEL III: ALTERNATIVES TO ENLARGEMENT

Are there any viable alternatives to EU enlargement and full membership in the EU? What are the other possibilities and platforms of cooperation? What can the EU offer to the North African countries attempting democratization?

Moderator: Mr. Philippe Perchoc, President, Nouvelle Europe
 Ms. Heather Grabbe, Director, Open Society Institute – Brussels, Former Advisor to the Commissioner for Enlargement
 Mr. Sylvain Kahn, Senior Researcher, Sciences Po Centre d’histoire, Producer and Moderator, France Culture
 Mr. Gerald Knaus, Director, European Stability Initiative
 Mr. Mongi Bousnina, Professor of Geopolitics – University of Tunis, Former Minister of Culture of Tunisia, Former Ambassador of Tunisia to France, Former Representative of Tunisia to UNESCO and the International Organisation of La Francophonie

Discussion

 18:40 – 19:00 Final Remarks and Conclusions
 Mr. Florent Parmentier, Scientific Advisor, Master in European Affairs, Sciences Po
 19:00 Reception