On October 10, 2012, The European Institute held its Annual Meeting of the Members and Board of Advsiors at the Embassy of Lithuania, hosted by His Excellency Žygimantas Pavilionis, Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania to the United States.  Moderated by Christopher Lombardi, Regional Director, Europe, Israel & Sub-Sahara at Raytheon Company, the panelists included: François Rivasseau, Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union; Ambassador Kurt Volker, Executive Director, McCain Institute for International Leadership, Arizona State University; Dr. Sujai Shivakumar, Deputy Director, Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship, The National Academies; and Fiona Alexander, Associate Administrator, Office of International Affairs, National Telecommunications and Information Administration.

The panel was followed by a dinner discussion with Dr. Robert Litan, Director of Research for Bloomberg Government and Author of Better Capitalism and Good Capitalism, Bad Capitalism , who candidly assessed economic recovery efforts in both the United States and Europe.

On September 18th, The European Institute hosted a breakfast discussion with Rolf Einar Fife, Director General of the Department of Legal Affairs at the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  As the chief Norwegian negotiator of the breakthrough 2010 agreement with Russia on maritime boundaries in the Barents Sea and Arctic Ocean, Mr. Fife explained the process of negotiating agreements for resolving competing claims on Arctic resources and stressed the importance of the International Law of the Sea treaty as a “rule book” for governing the Arctic.

On September 7, The European Institute welcomed Jørgen Abild Andersen, Director General for Telecoms at the Danish Business Authority, to a breakfast discussion on the recent developments in the ICT sector including the internet policy-making principles agreed to at last year’s OECD high-level meeting on the internet economy, which he chaired, and progress made during the Danish EU Presidency towards a European Digital Single Market. Mr. Abild Andersen stressed the importance of ICT’s contribution to economic growth. He also underlined the need for robust communications infrastructure and consumer trust and confidence in eCommerce in order to facilitate the continued development of the digital single market in Europe. The discussion was moderated by Jacquelynn Ruff, Vice President, Public Policy and International Regulatory Affairs, Verizon Communications, Inc.

On July 18, The European Institute welcomed a delegation from the European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) to a breakfast discussion on the Parliament’s role in the ongoing reform of the European Union’s public procurement policy. The committee members focused on the main aspects of the European Commission’s proposal to modernize the EU’s public procurement agreement, as well as the potential implications of these reforms for transatlantic trade. Michael Smart, Vice President at Rock Creek Global Advisors LLC, moderated the discussion with The Honorable Malcolm Harbour, Chairman of the IMCO Committee and The Honorable Heide Rühle (Germany – Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance) and The Honorable Edvard Kožušnik (Czech Republic – European Conservatives and Reformists Groups), Members of the IMCO Committee and Shadow Rapporteurs for public procurement. 

On June 27th, The European Institute welcomed back The Honorable John Dalli, European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy to discuss the impending EU proposals for ensuring product safety and strengthening market surveillance. Mr. Dalli also elaborated on the EU’s efforts to bolster supply chain security for food, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and other consumer products, as well as the prospects for further cooperation in ensuring the safety and security of goods in the transatlantic marketplace. Francine Lamoriello, Executive Vice President for Global Strategies for the Personal Care Products Council, moderated the discussion.

Click here to read Commissioner Dalli's remarks.