pressures we have either tended to neglect in the recent past or, even worse, refused to acknowledge at all. according to available public sources, the mean age of all ecb governing council members is 57. 8 years. the median age of all ecb governing council members amounts to 55. 1 years. c. f. chapter 1 ( “ the world of security ”, ger. “ die welt der sicherheit ” ) in zweig ( 1942 ). on the one hand, the aggression against ukraine pushed geopolitics and war back to the top of the european policy agenda. here, i could not imagine a more suitable forum to discuss the economic implications of these radical changes in a post - pandemic world than our high - level policy panel. i am proud and very happy to welcome tobias adrian, andrew bailey, claudio borio and joachim nagel this afternoon. on the other hand, russia ’ s invasion also serves as a painful reminder of how vulnerable our dependency on fossil energy sources makes us to sudden commodity price increases and their wider economic consequences. this wake - up call can serve as a unique opportunity to accelerate an anyway necessary transition to a greener modus operandi. however, forceful action against climate change can also imply trade - offs in terms of price stability. 7 session 4 tomorrow afternoon will therefore provide the important platform for an in - depth discussion of the opportunities and risks deriving from the impact of climate change and climate protection on inflation. let me conclude. the last chapter of zweig ’ s memoirs is called “ the agony of peace ”. 8 it describes an interwar period that had in fact managed to achieve a shaky peace, but only at the price of constantly rising political antagonism, uncertainty, and economic hardship. this gloomy outlook simply must not be our benchmark. when thinking about where to begin addressing the challenges ahead of us, we would be well advised to listen to those whose lives will be most affected by our decisions today : the younger generations. according to a flash - eurobarometer survey conducted in spring 2022, young europeans speak with a clear voice. their top priority expectation from the eu is to guarantee the “ preservation of peace, the reinforcement of international security and the promotion of international cooperation ”. 9 there can be no doubt that, as monetary policy makers, the best contribution to social peace we can make to fulfill young europeans ’ expectations is to abide by our price stability mandate. i sincerely hope

growth paradigm, and in rebalancing the economy, a failure in responding to population aging will make the escape from possible structural low growth difficult. negative effects due to population aging are already appearing in first moving countries like japan. and in a considerable number of later - developing countries, their so - called population bonus effects are expected to disappear before long. population aging is progressing rapidly in asia, while preparations for it are insufficient. in response we will have to reform our labor markets to ensure vigorous participation in economic activities by not only the aged but by youth and women, while on the other hand implementing social and education support policies to increase birth rate. ladies and gentlemen! it is said that our greatest enemy is not something that is external to us, but rather our own internal vanity and inattention. we cannot be content with the remarkable results that our asian economy has achieved over the past half - century. the challenges that the asian economy now faces are new ones, ones never previously experienced, but if we remain ever alert to this situation, and make provisions, and in particular if our regional countries cooperate closely, then we can welcome this as an opportunity for one further takeoff. i look forward to many meaningful measures being presented here today and tomorrow, through active expression of views and enthusiastic debates among participants, which can enable the 2 / 3 asian economy to overcome the challenges confronting it. given the difficulty of the challenges before us, your deep and wide - ranging wisdom and insights are very much needed. i would like to express one more time my profound gratitude to imf managing director christine lagarde and all of our other esteemed participants attending this conference. thank you. 3 / 3