16
September 2023
Past Event
Central and Eastern Europe Strategy Summit

In-person attendance by invitation only. The event will also air live on this page.

 

Inquiries: [email protected]

Central and Eastern Europe Strategy Summit

Past Event
Hudson Institute
September 16, 2023
Summit Logo
16
September 2023
Past Event

In-person attendance by invitation only. The event will also air live on this page.

 

Inquiries: [email protected]

Speakers:
Peter Rough Hudson Institute
Peter Rough

Senior Fellow and Director, Center on Europe and Eurasia

john_walters
John P. Walters

President and CEO

Moderators:
Matthew Boyse Hudson Institute
Matthew Boyse

Senior Fellow, Center on Europe and Eurasia

luke_coffey
Luke Coffey

Senior Fellow, Center on Europe and Eurasia

heinrichs
Rebeccah L. Heinrichs

Senior Fellow and Director, Keystone Defense Initiative

Hudson Institute’s Center on Europe and Eurasia is pleased to present the inaugural Central and Eastern Europe Strategy Summit, featuring senior officials from the Bucharest Nine states of Eastern Europe as well as Ukraine and Moldova.

Taking place just one week after the Bucharest Three Seas Initiative summit and two months after the Vilnius NATO summit, this gathering is an opportunity to take stock of events in the region and to preview High-Level Week at the United Nations General Assembly.

Hudson strongly believes that Europe’s significance extends beyond Berlin and that Central and Eastern European voices deserve more attention. Yet an in-person gathering of representatives from Central and Eastern Europe has not taken place in Washington for some time.

Over the course of three panels, this Summit will assess the war in Ukraine, survey the region’s remarkable economic performance, and evaluate geopolitical challenges from the Central and Eastern European perspective.

Agenda

9:00–9:55 a.m.: Registration and Breakfast

9:55–10:00 a.m.: Welcome Address

  • Mr. John P. Walters, President and CEO, Hudson Institute

10:00–11:15 a.m.: Geopolitics and Geoeconomics of Central and Eastern Europe (I)

Panelists:

  • Mr. Jaroslav Kurfürst, Director General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic
  • Mr. Witold Sobków, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland
  • Mr. Michal Pavúk, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic
  • Ms. Kyllike Sillaste-Elling, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia
  • Mr. Andzejs Vilumsons, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia

Moderator:

  • Ms. Rebeccah Heinrichs, Senior Fellow and Director, Keystone Defense Initiative, Hudson Institute

11:15–11:30 a.m.: Coffee Break

11:30 a.m.–12:45 p.m.: Geopolitics and Geoeconomics of Central and Eastern Europe (II)

Panelists:

  • Mr. Sebastian Mitrache, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania
  • Ms. Inga Stanytė-Toločkienė, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania
  • Mr. Zsolt Bunford, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary
  • Ms. Ekaterina Zaharieva, Vice Chair, Foreign Affairs Committee, National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria and Former Foreign Minister of Bulgaria (2017–2021)

Moderator:

  • Mr. Matt Boyse, Adjunct Fellow, Hudson Institute

12:45–1:00 p.m.: Coffee Break

1:00–2:00 p.m.: The View from Kyiv and Chișinău (Luncheon)

Panelists:

  • Ms. Liubov Nepop, Political Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
  • Ms. Cristina Gherasimov, Senior Advisor on Foreign Policy and European Integration to the President of the Republic of Moldova

Moderator:

  • Mr. Luke Coffey, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute

2:00–2:10 p.m.: Closing Remarks

Related Events
28
October 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Africa’s Role in Addressing America’s Critical Minerals Refining Vulnerability
Featured Speakers:
Dr. J. Peter Pham
Michael Hollomon II
Ben Kincaid
Joshua Meservey
Getty Images
28
October 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Africa’s Role in Addressing America’s Critical Minerals Refining Vulnerability

This discussion will cover the scale of the challenge, how the US government can better support domestic and allied refining, and how African nations can climb the critical minerals supply chains.

Getty Images
Featured Speakers:
Dr. J. Peter Pham
Michael Hollomon II
Ben Kincaid
Joshua Meservey
28
October 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
The Future of US Broadband and Spectrum Strategy
Featured Speakers:
Arielle Roth
Harold Furchtgott-Roth
Getty Images
28
October 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
The Future of US Broadband and Spectrum Strategy

To discuss how the administration is strengthening US leadership in communications and technology, Senior Fellow Harold Furchtgott-Roth will host Arielle Roth, assistant secretary of commerce for communications and information and administrator of the NTIA.

Getty Images
Featured Speakers:
Arielle Roth
Harold Furchtgott-Roth
30
October 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
How Long Can Russia’s Weakening Economy Support Putin’s War on Ukraine?
Featured Speakers:
Dr. Volodymyr Lugovskyy
Dr. Anders Aslund
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Getty Images
30
October 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
How Long Can Russia’s Weakening Economy Support Putin’s War on Ukraine?

Join noted Russian and Ukrainian economists and Hudson Senior Fellow Thomas Duesterberg for an event that will analyze how growing economic problems are affecting Vladimir Putin’s war effort and its ability to avoid an economic crisis.

Getty Images
Featured Speakers:
Dr. Volodymyr Lugovskyy
Dr. Anders Aslund
Thomas J. Duesterberg
03
November 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Congressman Rich McCormick on Securing American AI Leadership
Featured Speakers:
Congressman Rich McCormick
Jason Hsu
Representative Rich McCormick speaks during a House Committee on Foreign Affairs hearing on January 11, 2024. (Getty Images)
03
November 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Congressman Rich McCormick on Securing American AI Leadership

Senior Fellow Jason Hsu will host Congressman Rich McCormick (R-GA), a member of the House Armed Services Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee and a former member of the bipartisan Task Force on Artificial Intelligence, for a conversation on securing American AI leadership.

Representative Rich McCormick speaks during a House Committee on Foreign Affairs hearing on January 11, 2024. (Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Congressman Rich McCormick
Jason Hsu