Around ten prime ministers and presidents and 20 defence and foreign ministers from Europe, the Middle East and south-east Asia are coming to Prague next week for the Globsec international security conference, Robert Vass, founder and director of Globsec, told CTK in an interview yesterday.
Globsec, a non-government organisation which is organising its 19th annual conference, announced in March that the event would be moved from Bratislava to Prague, and President Petr Pavel would take over its patronage. About 2,000 guests from more than 70 countries will attend the conference, which will take place from 30 August to 1 September at the Hilton Hotel.
Vass said that Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, representatives of the Baltic states and leaders of the Balkan countries have confirmed their participation.
Among Czech politicians, Pavel, Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) and Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky (Pirates) will speak at the conference. The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Marketa Pekarova Adamova, Minister for European Affairs Martin Dvorak, Industry and Trade Minister Jozef Sikela (both STAN), Regional Development Minister Ivan Bartos (Pirates) and Health Minister Vlastimil Valek (TOP 09) have also confirmed their attendance.
According to the Globsec director, 2024 is special not only because of the symbolism and celebrations of 20 years of membership of the Czech Republic in the European Union and 25 years in NATO, but also because of many important elections in the European Union, the United States and France, for example.
“At the same time, the foundations of our security are being tested on our eastern borders, with the war that Russia started two years ago. Its aim is not only to redraw the map of Europe, but also to change the basic principles of European and global security,” said Vass.
International order is also being tested in other parts of the world, he added, in the Middle East, Yemen and south-east Asia. The Globsec conference is intended to act as a platform for dialogue between political leaders, experts and journalists in such an extremely complex period.
The conference is also supposed to see the establishment of a centre under the leadership of General John Allen, formerly US President Barack Obama’s adviser on the fight against the Islamic State, Vass said. The centre has the support of Microsoft President Brad Smith, for example, he said.
“We feel that the changes in technology, in artificial intelligence, are so rapid that they are having a major impact on our national security, democratic processes,” Vass said. The centre is expected to deliver outputs on how technology can be used for national security. The Globsec chief said it would be a network connecting technology and policy leaders from Europe, the United States and other parts of the world.
