Welcome to Our Joint Master Students

On Tuesday 7 February, we were pleased to welcome in Berlin the students of the Joint Master in Economic Governance and Public Affairs (GEGPA) and the Joint Master in EU Trade and Climate Diplomacy (EUDIPLO) for the opening session at Hotel Berlin, Berlin.

Matthias Waechter, Director General of CIFE, Arnaud Leconte, Director of both programmes, and the CIFE administrative staff from Berlin and Nice presented the 54 students from 14 countries with what they can expect this trimester.

There was then a discussion and Q+A session about "The EU's Economic and Political Integration in the Face of the New Global Map" in the context of the various ongoing crises (climate, Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine). Furthermore, Olaf Scholz's declaration of "Zeitenwende" (a turning point) for German foreign policy due to the tectonic shift of the war in Ukraine, Franco-German relations and Germany's role in the EU were also the subject of debate.

Finally, a keynote speech entitled "Berlin in Focus: Safeguarding Security in a Transnational World", was delivered by Torsten Akmann, Berlin State Secretary for Security and Internal Affairs. This was followed by an interactive discussion with students about Berlin's policy towards Ukrainian refugees and new forms of hybrid risks (digital and conventional) represented by extremists and foreign powers. We thank State Security Akmann for his inspiring words and for taking the time to speak to our students.

We wish both groups good luck for their term in Berlin!

Photos (C) Jan Bechberger