On June 8, 2020, Russian International Affairs Council, the Embassy of Croatia in Russia, and the Delegation of the European Union to Russia held a joint online workshop to discuss the EU-Russia relations in the Western Balkans.
The discussion focused on the EU priority policies during Croatian Presidency of the Council of the EU, that started on January 1, 2020, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the priorities of the Presidency, the possibilities for interaction between Russia and the EU, particularly in the Western Balkans, and prospects for the development of interaction between Russia and the EU in this region.
On June 8, 2020, Russian International Affairs Council, the Embassy of Croatia in Russia, and the Delegation of the European Union to Russia held a joint online workshop to discuss the EU-Russia relations in the Western Balkans.
The discussion focused on the EU priority policies during Croatian Presidency of the Council of the EU, that started on January 1, 2020, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the priorities of the Presidency, the possibilities for interaction between Russia and the EU, particularly in the Western Balkans, and prospects for the development of interaction between Russia and the EU in this region.
Opening remarks were made by Igor Ivanov, RIAC President; Andrey Kortunov, RIAC Director General; Angelina Eichhorst, Managing Director for Europe and Central Asia at the European External Action Service; and Tomislav Car, Ambassador of Croatia to Russia. Other speakers of the joint workshop included: Markus Ederer, Ambassador of the European Union to the Russian Federation; Dmitry Balakin, Deputy Director of the Department of European Cooperation, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Anvar Azimov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Croatia; Stribor Kikerec, acting Director General for Southeast Europe at the European External Action Service(Stribor Kikerec, Assistant Minister, Directorate for Southeast Europe, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia); Olga Butorina, Deputy Director for Scientific Work at RAS Institute of Europe, RIAC Member; Ekaterina Entina, Deputy Dean, Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs, HSE, RIAC Member; and Alexander Pivovarenko, Senior Research Associate, RAS Institute of Slavonic Studies, RIAC Member. The discussion was moderated by Ivan Timofeev, RIAC Director of Programs.
The meeting was attended by the ambassadors of the EU countries in Russia, representatives of the embassies of the EU member states in Moscow, representatives of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Slavonic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, MGIMO, HSE, and RAS IMEMO experts.
RIAC regularly holds workshops with the embassies of the countries with current presidency of the Council of the EU. Since 2015, RIAC has held workshops with the Embassies of Latvia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Estonia, Austria, and Finland.
