Recent Activities of the Center

Recent Activities of the Center

During May and June, the Research Center - Intercollege held four key public events:

On May 8 in cooperation with the French Embassy in Cyprus, it organized a round table discussion entitled “France after the Presidential Elections” chaired by Professor Andreas Theophanous during which Eric Sanson, Counselor and Charge d’ Affaires of the French Embassy and the Editor of the Cyprus Mail, Kosta Pavlowitch, elaborated on the new post-Chirac role of France on the European and international scene. The election of Sarkozy marks the beginning of a new period.

“Unresolved conflicts in the Eastern Mediterranean” was the title of the seminar organized on May 23 in cooperation with the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Cyprus. Deputy Director of the Press and Information Department at the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mr Andrei Krivtsov, and Ambassador Sotos Zakcheos, Chairman of the European Arab Interactive Forum, presented their views on the unresolved conflicts in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

The early part of June was very busy in terms of activities. On June 4 the Center organized a seminar entitled “Revisiting Kosovo and the Balkans and Broader Implications”. Professor Nadia Arbatova, Head of the Department of European Studies, IMEMO, at the Russian Academy of Sciences explored the subject “Russia’s Foreign Policy on the Kosovo Issue and the Balkans”, while Mr Gregory P. Macris, First Secretary at the Embassy of the United States in Cyprus, elaborated on the subject “American Foreign Policy on the Kosovo Issue and the Balkans: Past, Present and Future Prospects”.

On June 8, the Center organized a presentation of Angelos Syrigos’ book (in Greek) «Σχέδιο Ανάν: Οι κληρονομιές του παρελθόντος και οι προοπτικές του μέλλοντος» (“Annan Plan: The heritage of the past and future perspectives”). The book was presented by Mr. Yiannakis Matsis MEP of the European Popular Party, Mr. Adamos Adamou, MEP of the Confederal Group of the European United Left - Nordic Green Left, and Professor Andreas Theophanous. The event was chaired by journalist Sotirs Paroutis.

On the 15-16 June the Center participated in an important conference in Rhodes by the International Center for Black Sea Studies (ICBSS) and the Department of Mediterranean Studies of the University of Aegean, on “Security Concerns in the Wider Mediterranean and Black Sea Regions”. The conference assembled policymakers, academics, diplomats and analysts from Greece, Italy, France, Belgium, Israel, Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Malta, and Cyprus. It addressed issues of security, cooperation, energy, ethnic conflict and coexistence in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, as well as the role of the different powers. Professor Yannis Valinakis, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic, keynote speaker at the conference, noted the growing importance of the issues under examination, the objectives of the European Union and the particular role of Greece. Shlomo Avineri, Professor of Political Science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Roberto Aliboni, Vice-President of the Institute of International Affairs in Rome, Demetris Triantafyllou, Director General of the International Center for Black Sea Studies and Mustafa Aydin, Head of the Department of International Relations at the TOBB Economy and Technology University in Ankara, also delivered notable presentations. Cyprus was represented by Professor Andreas Theophanous who elaborated on the broader context of the Eastern Mediterranean including the Cyprus question and the wider implications.

Research Center - Intercollege