WATCH LIVE: GMF’s Virtual Brussels Forum Begins Tuesday, June 2nd

June 01, 2020
4 min read
Preeminent Transatlantic Gathering to Feature 20 Sessions and 75+ Speakers Online Throughout June
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Preeminent Transatlantic Gathering to Feature 20 Sessions and 75+ Speakers Online Throughout June

Speakers include: U.S. Coronavirus Response Coordinator Deborah Birx; EU Commissioners Margrethe Vestager and Věra Jourová; German Health Minister Jens Spahn and Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer; Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya; U.S. Senators Murphy, Warner, Whitehouse; Governors Hutchinson & Herbert; Stacey Abrams; Pete Buttigieg + more 

June 1, 2020—As the international community continues to respond and reset, the need for transatlantic dialogue is greater than ever. Beginning on June 2nd, the German Marshall Fund of the United States will present Brussels Forum—its marquee annual conference—online, with more than twenty newsmaker interviews, debates, and discussions featuring 75+ speakers spanning the full month.

All sessions will be streamed live at WWW.BRUSSELS.GMFUS.ORG. 

The forum addresses the most pressing issues on the transatlantic agenda—this year, through the lens of the coronavirus pandemic and its far-reaching implications. Sessions will be organized by topic across four thematic weeks: 1) U.S. politics and foreign policy; 2) Security and Defense; 3) Society, Democracy, and the Environment; 4) Economy and Technology. 

The forum will kick-off on Tuesday with a one-on-one conversation with U.S. Coronavirus Response Coordinator Ambassador Deborah Birx.

Confirmed speakers across the coming weeks include: 

  • Stacey Abrams, Founder, Fair Fight

  • Annalena Baerbock, Leader, Green Party, Germany

  • Pete Buttigieg, Former Mayor, South Bend, Indiana; Former Democratic Presidential Candidate

  • Arancha González Laya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Spain

  • Heidi Heitkamp, Former Senator (D-ND); Founder, One Country Project

  • Gary Herbert, Governor (R), State of Utah, United States

  • Zdeněk Hřib, Mayor, Prague, Czech Republic  

  • Will Hurd, Member (R-TX), United States House of Representatives 

  • Asa Hutchinson, Governor (R), State of Arkansas, United States

  • Věra Jourová, Vice-President and Commissioner for Transparency and Values, European Commission 

  • Gergely Karácsony, Mayor, Budapest, Hungary

  • Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Minister of Defense, Germany 

  • Cecilia Malmström, Former European Commissioner for Trade   

  • Chris Murphy, Member (D-CT), United States Senate 

  • Artis Pabriks, Minister of Defense, Latvia 

  • Jens Spahn, Federal Minister of Health, Germany 

  • Matúš Vallo, Mayor, Bratislava, Slovakia 

  • Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President for Digital and Competition Policy, European Commission

  • Mark Warner, Member (D-VA), United States Senate

  • Sheldon Whitehouse, Member (D-RI), United States Senate

  • More to be Announced

 

Brussels Forum kicks off tomorrow with a series of conversation focused on U.S. politics and transatlantic geopolitics. A schedule for Week One follows. 

Agenda updates and future sessions can be found online and will be shared weekly. Media with any questions can get in touch by responding directly to this email or by contacting any of the country-specific media relations contacts below.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belgium and Daimler are Founding Partners, and Deloitte is a Forum Partner of GMF’s Brussels Forum. The Ministry of Defense of Latvia and Taoti Creative are Associate Partners; Boeing, ExxonMobil, the King Baudouin Foundation, the US Mission to the European Union, and the Wilfred Martens Center are Supporting Partners. McKinsey Global Institute is a Knowledge Partner. GMF thanks all of its partners for making this year’s Brussels Forum possible. 

GMF’s Brussels Forum – Week 1 Schedule (subject to change): 

Tuesday, June 2:

15:00-16:00 CET (9AM-10AM EDT) – The Prognosis: The US, Europe, and the World in 2020

  • Mr. David Ignatius, Associate Editor and Columnist, The Washington Post      

  • Dr. Cecilia Malmström, former EU Trade Commissioner         

16:00-16:30 CET (10AM-10:30AM) EDT – A Conversation With 

  • Ambassador Deborah Birx, Coronavirus Response Coordinator, The White House

Wednesday, June 3

16:00-17:00 CET (10AM-11AM EDT) –One Nation, Under COVID: U.S. Politics in 2020  

  • Mr. Yoni Appelbaum, Senior Editor, The Atlantic

  • Ms. Heidi Heitkamp, Founder, One Country Project

  • The Hon. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Former Member, U.S. House of Representatives

  • Ms. Amy Walter, National Editor, The Cook Political Report

  • Moderator: Ms. Margaret Carlson, Opinion Columnist, The Daily Beast

Thursday, June 4

17:00-17:45 CET (11AM-11:45AM EDT) – A Conversation With: 

  • Pete Buttigieg, former Mayor of South Bend; 2020 U.S. Presidential Candidate

Friday, June 5 

16:00-17:00 CET (10-11AM EDT) – The Transatlantic Politics and Geopolitics of COVID-19 

  • The Hon. Arancha González Laya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Spain         

  • The Hon. Chris Murphy, Member, U.S. Senate

  • Additional Speakers to be Announced

  • Moderator: Mr. Daniel Kurtz-Phelan, Executive Editor, Foreign Affairs

Media Relations Contacts: 

Brussels: Angelina Sutalo // [email protected]

Washington: Sydney Simon // [email protected] 

Berlin: Sena Staufer // [email protected]