The Danube Regional Strategy

26 May 2011

The UCL European Institute and the Embassy of Hungary to the UK are holding a joint event on the EU Strategy for the Danube Region, a key priority for the current Hungarian presidency of the European Council.

Based on the experiences of the Baltic Sea Strategy, this macro-regional EU initiative aims to strengthen sustainable territorial development, cohesion and competitiveness. Eight EU member states (Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia), as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia and Ukraine, participate in the scheme. Its priority areas include environment, shipping and transport connections, energy security, and socio-economic development. It also aims to foster good neighbourly relations in the region and consolidate the European integration process with the Western Balkan countries.

The panel will comprise policy-makers, EU officials and UCL academics, and aims to discuss the details, potential and challenges of the strategy in the light of wider developments in the region.

Speakers

• Ms Etelka Barsi-Pataky, Government Commissioner for the Danube Strategy
• Prof György Schöpflin, MEP for Hungary (Fidesz) and formerly Jean Monnet Professor of Politics, University of London
• Prof Uwe Puetter, Jean Monnet Chair in European Public Policy and Governance and Director of the Center for European Union Research, Central European University, Budapest.
• Dr Peter Duncan, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Russian Politics and Society, SSEES.

The event is free but registration is required. Please book your place below.