PROGRAMMECONTEXT

Massive tragedies caused by wars and hostilities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, but also theaggravation of tensions in the Indo-Paciﬁc and instability in Central and South America show us that all
corners of the globe face violent conﬂicts or insecurity. These regional conﬂicts and crisis run in parallel withthe accelerating great power competition, jeopardizing global trade relations and disrupting vital supply
chains worldwide. All this indicates that the risk of a wider confrontation should not be underestimated. In
the face of these threatening challenges, how can we avoid even more dire straits? How can we chart safe
passages towards peace?
Large parts of humanity are rightfully longing for better living conditions and the reduction of global
structural asymmetries. No part of the world is spared from the ramiﬁcations of human-made climatechange. Refugees of war and natural catastrophes, along with migrants seeking a better life, reshapesocieties on all continents. National politics, regional organisations and the international multilateral orderitself grapple with these new realities and the need to adjust to the new circumstances. How can we charta safe course through these long-term challenges and bypass dire straits that hinder solutions?
The answer lies in building a new vision for the cooperation between the West and the Global South. This
will require the overcoming of the simplistic division of the world in two camps, which are actually deeplyinterconnected vessels. For this reason, one of the main emphases of this year’s Dubrovnik Forum is toprovide a platform for an open exchange of views and practical ideas fostering that vision between theNorth and the South, the East and the West.
Another central emphasis of this year’s Dubrovnik Forum will be the transatlantic community and the futureof Europe. In 2024, crucial elections are being held on both sides of the Atlantic. First citizens, then elected
politicians have to make serious choices with far-reaching impact on internal politics as well as on worldaﬀairs. What are the dire straits here, where are the safe passages? As in previous years, special focus will
be devoted to the Western Balkans and their Euro-Atlantic path.
The unique feature of this year’s Forum will be a discussion on the role of AI in diplomacy and global
governance, alongside a dedicated event for young leaders and the special OECD Dubrovnik Talks.
The Forum will convene in the historic city of Dubrovnik, a symbol of openness arising from Croatia’s andDubrovnik’s longstanding role as a bridge between diverse cultures and peoples and its global merchant andseafaring tradition.

Venue Hotel Dubrovnik Palace
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Friday, June 28
10:00 – 10:05

Opening and Welcoming Remarks

10:05 – 10:15

Setting the Scene:

10:15 – 11:30

Young Leaders' Event
Transatlantic Partnership and the Changing Global Order: An
Opportunity for Transatlantic Young Leaders to Forge a Secureand Innovative Future?

Gordan Grlić Radman
Minister of Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Croatia

Conference Hall
Mare I

Gordan Jandroković
Speaker of the Croatian Parliament

organized by the Millennium Leadership Program of the Atlantic Council and the Croatian
Academy for Political Development

Moderator:
Ivan Marić
Board Member of the Academy for Political Development, Croatia

Panelists:

Pete Seat
VP Bose Public Aﬀairs, United States
Dr. Irina Ghaplanyan
American University of Armenia, former Deputy Ministerof Environment Armenia
Zlatko Galešić
Siemens Energy, Croatia
Iva Tomić
World Bank, Zagreb Oﬃce, Croatia
Tom Bonsundy-O'BryanMeta, United Kingdom

11:30 – 13:30

Opening lunch

Restaurant Lenga

Working Sessions
13:30 – 14:30“A Still Point of the Turning World”:
Legacy of NATO in the Changing
International Geopolitical LandscapeConference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Branimir Farkaš
HRT – Croatian Television

2/7

Panelists:
Josip Brkić
Deputy Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Special Envoy of the Chairwomanof the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Branko Hrg
State Secretary, Ministry of Defence, Croatia
Davor Ivo Stier
Elected Member of the European Parliament
Daniel Olsson
Deputy Director-General, Ministry for Foreign Aﬀairs, Sweden
Ranko Krivokapić
Former Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Montenegro

15:00 – 16:00

Clearing Paths, Building Futures: Mine Action for the Peace FormulaConference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Davor Laura
Croatian Mine Action Centre
Panelists:Damir Trut
Director General, Civil Protection, Croatia
Volodymyr Baida
Director, Governmental Center for Humanitarian Demining, Ukraine
Stefano Toscano
Director, Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD)
Ivana ŽivkovićAssistant Secretary-General, Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional
Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, UN

16:30 – 17:30

Endorsing Sustainable Investments to Reduce Development
Challenges: Multi-stakeholder Approach

Conference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Zdenko Lucić
State Secretary for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation,
Ministry of Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Croatia
Panelists:
Colin Bruce
Special Envoy, Humanitarian and Development Aﬀairs, ICRC
Tatiana Valovaya
Director-General of the United Nations Oﬃce at Geneva
Teresa CzerwińskaVice-President, EIBMaría del Pilar Garrido Gonzalo
Director for Development Co-operation, OECD
Andrea von Rauch
Director of International Services, GIZ, Germany
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16:30 – 17:30

Building Out the Three Seas Initiative’s Next Decade

Conference HallMare IIIModerator:
Valbona Zeneli
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council
Panelists:
Marko Primorac
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Croatia
Luca Niculescu
Secretary of State, Ministry of Foreign Aﬀairs, Romania
Gediminas Varvuolis
Ambassador at Large for Connectivity and the Three Seas Initiative, Lithuania
Stephen Nikola Bartulica
Elected Member of the European Parliament

18:00 – 19:30

OECD Dubrovnik Talks
Digital and Green SMEs: Accelerating the Twin Transitionsin the Western Balkans

Conference HallMare III

Keynote speech:
Gordan Grlić Radman
Minister of Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Croatia
Setting the Scene:Andreas Schaal
Director for OECD Global Relations and Co-operation
Moderator:
Zdenko Lucić
State Secretary for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation,
Ministry of Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Croatia
Panelists:
Elira Demiraj
Director of the Economic Development Department,
Ministry of Finance and Economy, Albania
Zef Dedaj
Acting Director General of KIESA, Ministry of Industry,
Entrepreneurship and Trade, KosovoJumni Ademi
State Counsellor for Entrepreneurship and Competitiveness of SMEs,
Ministry of Economy, North Macedonia
Radman Šelmić
Advisor to the President for Green and Circular Economy, Chamber ofCommerce and Industry, Serbia

20:30 –Gala dinner (by special invitation only)

Vala Beachhosted by Andrej Plenković
Prime Minister of Croatia
4/7Saturday, June 29
Family Photo

10th Floor Terrace

09:00 – 09:10

Address by

Conference Hall
Mare I

09:10 – 10:20

Leaders’ Panel
North-South, East-West: In Search of Safe Passages

08:45

Working Sessions
Andrej Plenković
Prime Minister of CroatiaModerator:
Mladen Sirovica
HRT – Croatian Television
Panelists:
Antonio Tajani
Vice-President of the Council of Ministers and Ministerof Foreign Aﬀairs and International Cooperation, Italy
Gordan Grlić Radman
Minister of Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Croatia
Dmytro Kuleba
Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Ukraine
Marija Pejčinović Burić
Secretary-General, Council of Europe
Josep Borrell Fontelles
High Representative of the EU for Foreign Aﬀairs
and Security Policy / Vice-President of the European Commission
Wu Hongbo
Special Representative of the Government on European Aﬀairs, ChinaTedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
Director-General, WHO
Fukazawa Yoichi
Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Aﬀairs, Japan

10:30 – 11:30

Leaders’ Panel
Connecting the Dots: Reliable Supply Chainsand Maritime Security

Conference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Edward P. Joseph
Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Institute, Johns Hopkins SAIS
Panelists:
Davor Božinović
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, Croatia
Josip Brkić
Deputy Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Special Envoy of the Chairwomanof the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina
51 // 87Ivan Kondov
Deputy Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Bulgaria
Elnur Mammadov
Deputy Foreign Minister, Azerbaijan
Andreas Schaal
Director for OECD Global Relations and Co-operation

12:00 – 13:00

Quo Vadis, Europa?
Setting the Scene:
Dubravka Šuica
Vice-President of the European Commission for Demography and Democracy

Conference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Augustin Palokaj
Jutarnji list
Panelists:
Tanja Fajon
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Slovenia
Dubravka Šuica
Vice-President of the European Commission for Demography and Democracy
Teimuraz Janjalia
Deputy Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Georgia
Elisabeth Kornfeind
Director General for Europe and Economy, Federal Ministry
for European and International Aﬀairs, Austria

13:30 – 14:30

VIP Lunch

14:30 – 15:45

Western Balkans: Unlocking the Reform Potential

Restaurant Lenga
Conference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Michael MartensFrankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
Panelists:
Donika Gërvalla-Schwarz
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs and Diaspora, Kosovo
Gordan Grlić Radman
Minister of Foreign and European Aﬀairs, Croatia
Elmedin Konaković
Minister of Foreign Aﬀairs, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Igli Hasani
Minister for Europe and Foreign Aﬀairs, Albania
Timcho MucunskiMinister of Foreign Aﬀairs and Foreign Trade, North Macedonia
Nikola Stojanović
State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Aﬀairs, Serbia
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James O’Brien
Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Aﬀairs,
State Department, United States
Miroslav Lajčák
EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue andother Western Balkan regional issues
Christian Schmidt
High Representative, OHR

14:30 – 15:30

Africa in Focus: Shifting the Paradigms Together
Moderator:
Rossela Marangio
Senior Analyst, EU ISS

Conference Hall
Mare III

Panelists:Željana Zovko
Elected Member of the European Parliament; Vice-Chair,Committee on Foreign Aﬀairs, European Parliament 2019 - 2024
Max Primorac
Senior Research Fellow, Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom,
The Heritage Foundation
Andrew Caruana-Galizia
Head of Europe & Eurasia, World Economic Forum
Adeyinka Adewale
Associate Professor, Henley Business School, United Kingdom
Ayman Tharwat Amin Abdel Aziz
Ambassador of Egypt to Croatia

16:00 – 17:00

SAIling Through the Digital StrAIts

Conference Hall
Mare I

Moderator:
Javier Espinoza
EU and Digital Correspondent, Financial Times
Panelists:
Ettore Greco
Executive Vice President, Istituto Aﬀari InternazionaliPeter SørensenEEAS Principal Adviser, Ambassador at Large,
Special Envoy for Digital Diplomacy
Ervin Jagatić
Product Director, Infobip
Aco Momčilović
AI expert and Member of the CRO AI Board

Government of Croatia
Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs
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