15.3.2016 eRegions Think Tank Meeting, Castle Jable nr. Ljubljana

15.3.2016 eRegions Think Tank Meeting, Castle Jable nr. Ljubljana

Date: Tuesday, 15.3.2016, 10:00 – 15:00

Location: Castle Jable, Grajska cesta 1, 1234 Mengeš, Slovenia

 

C o - o r g a n i z e r s

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia

eRegions on the New eAmber and New eSilk Roads Think Tank

Center for European Perspective

Content

I n v i t a t i o n

C o n c e p t    P a p e r    f o r    t h e    T h i n k     T a n k    M e e t i n g

P r o g r a m  

S t a t e m e n t

P a r t i c i p a n t s

A d d r e s s e s    &     P r e s e n t a t i o n s    (attachments)

Invitation

Dear Madam/Sir,

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia and the Members of the eRegions on the New eAmber and New eSilk Roads Think Tank together with the Centre for European Perspective – CEP are inviting you in the framework of the cooperation program of the Think Tanks from Central and Eastern European Countries and China to the Regional Meeting of Think Tanks of China and Central and Eastern European Countries. The Meeting will be held at Castle Jable, Grajska cesta 1, Mengeš, Slovenia on March 15, 2016, starting 10.00.

Special guest and keynote speaker will be H.E. Mr. Liu Haixing, Assistant Foreign Minister and Secretary-General of the Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries – CEEC Secretariat, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.

We kindly request you to send the confirmation of the participation at the symposium no latter than March 4, to Ms. Neža Beguš, Neza.Begus@gov.si .

Participants are supposed to pay the travel and accommodation expenses by them. Centre for European Perspective has a favourable arrangement with the Ambient Hotel in Domžale, 6 kilometres from the Castle Jable. Free shuttle between the hotel and the Ljubljana Airport is available, however the transport must be booked at least 24 hours before arrival. A price of transport between the hotel and Castle Jable is 12,00 EUR (up to 4 people); 20,00 EUR (from 4 to 8 people) per way.

The working language of the meeting will be English.

The Meeting’s Agenda will be provided at a later point in time. You are welcome to propose a topic of your interest to be discussed in the meeting as soon as possible. We are looking forward to receiving your suggestions regarding the Think Tank development directions and possible joint actions in 2016.

With best regards,

Dr. Stanislav Raščan, Think Tank Chairman, Acting Head of Department for Strategic Studies and Analyses, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia
Stanislav.Rascan@gov.si

Dr. Jože Gričar, Professor Emeritus
University of Maribor, Slovenia & Program Coordinator, Inter-Municipality Initiative: Cross-border eCollaboration in the  eRegions
Gricar@FOV.Uni-Mb.si

Concept Paper for the Think Thank Meeting

Historically, the term Silk Road denotes a network of ancient trade and cultural routes connecting China and Central and South Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Since its very beginning, the spirit of the Silk Road has always been peace, cooperation, openness, inclusiveness, mutual learning and win-win progress.

In 2013, when visiting Kazakhstan and Indonesia, the Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed major initiatives for a modern Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (One Belt and One Road – OBOR), which attracted considerable international interest and received favourable responses from many countries. One Belt and One Road is a major economic cooperation initiative proposed by China, as well as an important step for the country to further open up to the rest of the world.

The Chinese side proposes that OBOR should aim to increase political communication, road connections, unimpeded trade, currency flows and friendly relations, its main priorities being practical cooperation on infrastructure, connectivity in general, the economy, trade, energy, environment-friendly sectors, financial services and the maritime sector.

Almost simultaneously, China elaborated on and defined the so-called “16+1 Initiative”, tailored to a comprehensive interconnectivity project designed for cooperation with sixteen Central and Eastern European Countries.

Thus, the OBOR initiative involves not only modern land and maritime traffic infrastructure network projects meeting the demands of the 21st century, but will also increase the potential for strengthening, deepening and expanding opportunities for EU-China cooperation, cooperation between CEE countries (CEECs) and China, and – last, but not least – provide opportunities for mutual benefits and the internal development of all participants.

At the Third China-CEEC Summit held in Belgrade in December 2014, Premier Li Keqiang proposed the establishment of a think-tank network for academic research and the exchange of views. A year later, when addressing the Fourth Summit in Suzhou, Premier Li Keqiang reiterated China’s support for implementing the 16+1 Think Tank Network and encouraged interaction between scholars on both sides. The agenda of the Think Tank Network has many goals. Overall, its most important  task  will be to find answers to the questions why and how China and 16 CEEc could strengthen and develop their relations, create opportunities for synergies between OBOR and the “16+1 Initative”, and define what challenges and opportunities lie ahead.

We sincerely hope that our discussion will contribute positively to these goals.

Program

Tuesday, 15 March 2016

9:30 – 10:00          Registration and coffee      Venue: Wedding Hall

10.00 – 10:50        Opening ceremony       Venue: Auditorium

Opening speech by:

Dr. Stanislav Raščan, Head, Department for Strategic Studies and Analyses, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Slovenia

Keynote speech by:

Mr Liu Haixing, Head of Delegation, Assistant Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, People’s Republic of China & Secretary General, Secretariat for Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries

Greeting speech by:

Dr. Gorazd Justinek, Executive Director
Center for European Perspective – CEP, Loka pri Mengšu, Slovenia

Greeting speech by:

Dr. Jože Gričar, Professor Emeritus,  University of Maribor & Program Coordinator, Inter-Municipality Initiative: Cross-border eCollaboration in the eRegions

11:00 – 12.00      Venue: Auditorium

Panel discussions 1:

One Belt one Road policy communication trough Think Tanks collaboration and practical cooperation in infrastructure, connectivity, people to people exchange

Opening discussions by:

  • Mr Vojko Kuzma, Minister Plenipotentiary, Department for Strategic Studies and Analyses, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,Republic of Slovenia: One Belt One Road Geopolitical view
  • Dr. Danica Purg, Professor & President, IEDC-Bled School of Management: Cooperation between IEDC and Central and East European Management Development Association (CEEMAN) with China
  • H. E. Mr Zurab Bekaia, Ambassador of Georgia to Slovenia: The role of Georgia in One Belt One Road Initiative
  • H. E. Mr Paweł Czerwiński, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Slovenia: The role of Poland in One Belt One Road Initiative
  • Dr. Andrej Fištravec, Mayor, City Municipality of Maribor: The cooperation between City of Maribor and China

12:00 – 13:00        Buffet lunch and networking     Venue: Wedding Hall

 13:00 – 15.00       Venue: Auditorium

Panel discussions 2: Opportunities for the enlarged potential to strengthen, deepen and expand opportunities for EU-China cooperation

  • Mrs Suzana Zornada – Vrabec, Sales and Marketing Department, Port of Koper – Luka Koper, d.d., Slovenia: Port of Koper connecting markets of Central and Eastern Europe with Mediterranean Sea and Far East
  • Dr. Matevž Raškovič, Assistant Professor & Confucius Institute Ljubljana, Slovenia & Visiting Scholar, Shanghai University of International Business & Economics (SUIBE), China: Stereotips and relations towards business cooperation with China and Chinese FDI in CEE Region (Slovenia, Poland, Montenegro)
  • Mag. Miha Ješe, Mayor, Municipality of Škofja Loka, Slovenia & Coordinator, eMunicipalities Without Borders Mayors Consortium: Concept of  the eMunicipalities Websites in the eRegions
  • Mr Brane Krajnik, CEO and Publisher, The Slovenia Times: The role of Media in One Belt One Road Initiative

Statement

Statement

by the participants of the eRegions Think Tank Meeting, Jable Castle, Slovenia, 15 March 2016

Historically, the term Silk Road denotes a network of ancient trade and cultural routes connecting China and Central and South Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Since its beginnings, the spirit of the Silk Road has always encompassed peace, cooperation, openness, inclusiveness, mutual learning and win-win progress.

The current initiatives for a modern Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (One Belt and One Road – OBOR) attracted considerable international interest and received favourable responses from many countries. OBOR is an important and comprehensive economic cooperation initiative proposed by China, as well as an important step for the country to further open up to the rest of the world.

OBOR is expected to increase political communication, improve traffic infrastructure connections, enforce economic cooperation, enable unimpeded trade and currency flows and enhance friendly relations. Its main priorities are practical cooperation on the infrastructure, connectivity in general, trade, energy, environment-friendly sectors, financial services and the maritime sector. The ’16+1 Initiative’ is an important element of the OBOR initiative, tailored to comprehensive interconnectivity projects for the cooperation of sixteen Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) with China. It is in line with the macro regional development in Europe. Since last year’s EU‑China summit, it has also become an important element of the EU-China dialogue and cooperation. It is expected to increase the potential for strengthening, deepening and expanding the opportunities of EU-China collaboration, and provide mutual benefits and internal development of all participating countries.

The Think Tank Network for research and views exchange of national and local government, business, ICT providers, diplomats and the academia is an important mechanism for innovative accelerated development of the 16+1 Initiative. There are several goals on its agenda. Overall, its most important task is to investigate why and how diverse organisations in the countries of the 16+1 Initiative could be involved, as well as how they could strengthen and further develop their relations, create synergy opportunities and identify challenges and opportunities ahead.

A cross-border region, in which eTechnologies are extensively used, is considered as an eRegion. The borderless nature of eTechnologies allows and calls for new approaches to efficient and effective cross-border eCollaboration between the organisations within a specific macro region and between regions themselves. The interoperability of eRegions is a common challenge for all regions and is in the focus of the eRegions Think Tank .

Follow-up event: 6th eRegions Conference 2016: Cross-border eSolutions & eServices Prototypes Development, to be held in Ljubljana, Slovenia, on 19 and 20 September 2016.

Participants

Representatives of:
Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Federal Republic of Germany, Georgia, Japan, Kosovo, Malesia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Turkey, United States of America

Address by:
Ambassador of Georgia, Ambassador of Poland (attachments)
Presentation of:
Geopolitical Aspect, Georgia, Port of Koper, Multi-Country Study (attachments)

Delegation of the People’s Republic of China
Mr LIU Haixing, Head of Delegation, Assistant Minister & Secretary General of the Secretariat for Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries
Mr ZHU Qin, Deputy Director-General of the Department of European Affairs
Mr TIAN Yishu, Director of Division of the Department of European Affairs
Mr MA Qian, Second Secretary, Department of European Affairs, Secretary of the Head of Delegation
Mr ZHU Zhixue, Third Secretary, Department of European Affairs
Ms YANG Xiaoting, Interpreter
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Dr. Tomaž Amon, President
Center for Scientific Visualization, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tomaz.Amon@bioanim.com

Ms Jana Arbeiter
Center for European Perspective – CEP, Loka pri Mengšu, Slovenia
Jana.Arbeiter@CEP.si

Mag. Lubomír Bažant, Councellor
Embassy of the Czech Republic to the Republic of Slovenia
Lubomir.Bazant@MZV.cz

H.E. Mr Zurab Bekaia, Ambassador
Embassy of the Republic of Georgia to the Republic of Slovenia
ZBekaia@mfa.gov.ge

Mrs Mirjam Bizjak, Principal
Grammar School France Prešeren Kranj, Slovenia
Mirjam.Bizjak@GFP.si

Mrs Nurdan Çamlibel Aydin, Commercial Counsellor
Embassy of the Republic of Turkey to the Republic of Slovenia
Ljubljana@ekonomi.gov.tr

Ms Petra Cerjak, President
Slovenian-Chinese Association Ljubljana & Director, KADUCEJ Consulting Ptuj
Petra.Cerjak@Slo-Cn.si

Mr Mirko Cigler, Member
Slovenian Association for International Relations
MMCigler@hotmail.com

H.E. Mr Pawel Czerwinski, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Embassy of the of the Republic of Poland to the Republic of Slovenia
Pawel.Czerwinski@MSZ.gov.pl

Dr. Dragan Čišić, Professor & Vice Dean for Research
Faculty of Maritime Studies, University of Rijeka, Croatia & Contact Person, Rijeka iLiving Lab
Dragan@PFRi.hr

Dr. Slavica Ćosović-Bajić, Associate Professor & Dean
Polytechnic Zagreb, Croatia
SlavicaCB@TVZ.hr

Dr. Srečko Devjak, Professor & Dean
MLC – Management nad Law College Ljubljana, Slovenia
Srecko.Devjak@MLCLjubljana.com

Ms Silvija Fister
Slovenia Times
Silvija.Fister@gmail.com

Dr. Andrej Fištravec, Mayor
City Municipality of Maribor – University City of Maribor, Slovenia
Andrej.Fistravec@Maribor.si

Mrs. Carmen Florea, Deputy Head of Mission
Embassy of Romania to the Republic of Slovenia
Embassy.of.Romania@siol.net

Mr Tamer Ghaly, Second Secretary
Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt to the Republic of Slovenia
TGhaly77@hotmail.com

Dr. Jože Gričar, Professor Emeritus
University of Maribor, Slovenia & Program Coordinator, Inter-Municipality Initiative: Cross-border eCollaboration in the Danube eRegion & eRegions Think Tank Contact Person
Gricar@FOV.Uni-Mb.si

Mag. Bojan Grobovšek, President
Slovenian Association for International Relations
B.Grobovsek@gmail.com

Ms Špela Grum, Teacher of English Language
Secondary School of Technical Professions Šiška Ljubljana, Slovenia
Spela.Grum@SSTS.si

Mag. Andreja Jerina, National Coordinator, EU Macroregional Strategies
Minister’s Office, Ministry for Foreign Affairs Republic of Slovenia, European Policy
Andreja.Jerina@gov.si

H. E. Mr Željko Jerkić, Ambassador
Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Republic of Slovenia
AmbasadaBiH@siol.net

Mag. Miha Ješe, Mayor
Municipality of Škofja Loka, Slovenia & Coordinator, eMunicipalities Without Borders Mayors Consortium
Miha.Jese@SkofjaLoka.si

Dr. Gorazd Justinek, Executive Director
Center for European Perspective – CEP, Loka pri Mengšu, Slovenia
Gorazd.Justinek@CEP.si

H.E. Mrs Serra Kaleli, Ambassador
Embassy of the Republic of Turkey to the Republic of Slovenia
Serra.Kaleli@mfa.gov.tr

Mr Marko Kovačič, Adviser to the Mayor
City Administration, Municipality of Maribor – University City of Maribor, Slovenia
Marko.Kovacic@Maribor.si

Mr Brane Krajnik, CEO and Publisher
Slovenia Times
Brane.Krajnik@SloveniaTimes.com

Dr. Jožef Kunič, Honorary President
Slovenian Association for International Relations
JozeKunic@telemach.net

Mr Vojko Kuzma, Minister Plenipotentiary
Department of Strategic Planning and Analysis, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Slovenia & eRegions Think Tank Administrative Assistant
Vojko.Kuzma@gov.si

Mr Liu Haixing, Assistant Minister
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, People’s Republic of China & Secretary General, Secretariat for Cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries

Mr Sergej Lugović, Lecturer
Polytechnic Zagreb, Croatia
SLugovic@TVZ.hr

Ms Elizabeth Mader, Political and Economic Counselor
Embassy of the United States of America to the Republic of Slovenia
MaderE@state.gov

Mr Yoshiaki Makino, First Secretary
Embassy of Japan to the Republic of Slovenia
Yoshiaki.Makino@mofa.go.jp

Mr Darko Mali, Head, Research and Development Strategies Department
Institute of the Republic of Slovenia for Vocational Education and Training & eCoordinator, Cross-border Grammar eSchools Collaboration
Darko.Mali@CPI.si

Mrs Elizabeta Margitić Mihelec, Senior Associate of Department
Sector for International Affairs, Croatian Chamber of Economy – County Chamber Rijeka
EMargitic@HGK.hr

Mr Mitja Meršol, Member
Slovenian Association for International Relations
Mitja.Mersol@gmail.com

Mr Iztok Mirošič, Ambassador
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Slovenia
Iztok.Mirosic@gov.si

Mr Srđan Orlandić, Assistant to Ambassador
Embassy of Montenegro to the Republic of Slovenia
EmbaMon-Lj@t-2.net

Mr Anton Papež, Honorary Consul
Consulate of Malaysia in Ljubljana, Slovenia
Papez.da@siol.net

Mrs Simona Partlič, Advisor
City Administration, Municipality of Maribor – University City of Maribor
Simona.Partlic@Maribor.si

H. E. Dr. Anna Elisabeth Prinz, Ambassador
Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Republic of Slovenia
GermanEmbassy-Slovenia@siol.net

Dr. Danica Purg, Professor & President
IEDC-Bled School of Management, Slovenia
Danica.Purg@IEDC.si

H. E. Mr Pëllumb Qazimi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Embassy of the Republic of Albania to the Republic of Slovenia
Embassy.Ljubljana@mfa.gov.al

Mr Tine Radinja, Deputy Mayor
Municipality of Škofja Loka, Slovenia
Tine.Radinja@SkofjaLoka.si

Dr. Stanislav Raščan, Ambassador, Head
Department of Strategic Planning and Analysis, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Slovenia & Assistant Professor of International Security Policy, Graduate School of Government and European Studies, Kranj & eRegions Think Tank Chairman
Stanislav.Rascan@gov.si

Dr. Matevž Rašković, Assistant Professor & Confucius Institute Ljubljana, Slovenia & Visiting Scholar, Shanghai University of International Business & Economics (SUIBE), China
Matevz.Raskovic@EF.Uni-Lj.si

Dr. Nataša Ravbar, Assistant Professor
Karst Research Institute, Scientific Research Centre, Slovene Academy of Sciences and Arts, Postojna
Natasa.Ravbar@ZRC-SAZU.si

H. E. Mr Nexhmi Rexhepi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Embassy of the Republic of Kosovo to the Republic of Slovenia
Nexhmi.Rexhepi@rks-gov.net

Mr Tomaž Rogač
Center for European Perspective – CEP, Loka pri Mengšu, Slovenia
Tomaz.Rogac@CEP.si

Mr Fotios Samelis, Senior Account Manger
Huawei Slovenia Office
Fotios.Samelis@Huawei.com

Mr Josef Samson, Attaché
Embassy of the Czech Republic to the Republic of Slovenia
Ljubljana@Embassy.MZV.cz

Mrs Klaudija Šadl Jug, Head
Mayors Office, Municipality of Murska Sobota, Slovenia
Klaudija.Sadl-Jug@Murska-Sobota.si

Mrs Dagmar Šober, Economic Diplomacy
Embassy of the Czech Republic to the Republic of Slovenia
Dagmar_Sober@MZV.cz

Ms Mateja Štruc
Municipality of Škofja Loka, Slovenia
Mateja.Struc@gmail.com

Mr Jernej Tavčar, Website Administrator
Municipality of Škofja Loka, Slovenia
Jernej.Tavcar@SkofjaLoka.si

Mrs Tina Tomšič, Marketing
Alps Wine d.o.o. Petrovče, Slovenia
Tina.Tomsic@AlpsWine.net

Dr. Duquan XIE, Professor
Shanghai University of International Business and Economics & Chinese Director, Confucius Institute in Ljubljana, Slovenia
arthurguo2@163.com

H. E. Mr YE Hao, Ambassador
Embassy the People’s Republic of China to the Republic of Slovenia
Kitajsko.Veleposlanistvo@siol.net

Mag. Albin Vrabič, Principal
Mining and Environmental Protection School, School Centre Velenje, Slovenia
Albin.Vrabic@SCV.si

Mr Andrej Vrčon, Secretary General
Center for European Perspective – CEP, Loka pri Mengšu, Slovenia
Andrej.Vrcon@CEP.si

Dr. Marian Záhora, Ambassador, Commercial and Economic Affairs
Embassy of the Slovak Republic to the Republic of Slovenia
Marian.Zahora@MZV.sk

Mr Rogers Zeng, CEO
Huawei Slovenia Office
Rogers.ZengYongjian@Huawei.com

Mrs Suzana Zornada-Vrabec, Sales and Marketing Department
Port of Koper – Luka Koper, d.d., Slovenia
Suzana.Zornada@Luka-kp.si

Mag. Franc Žepič, Secretary, Priority Area Coordinator 1B of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region
Office for International Affairs, Ministry of Infrastructure, Republic of Slovenia
Franc.Zepic@gov.si

Attached documents: