Diplomatic World_nummer 58_Online

58
INTERLINKING POLITICS, DIPLOMACY, BUSINESS & FINANCE
ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY, CULTURAL DIPLOMACY & HEALTH
KING
WILLEM-ALEXANDER
OF THE
NETHERLANDS
KING PHILIPPE
OF BELGIUM
GRAND DUKE HENRI
OF LUXEMBOURG
H.E.
BUDDHI
ATHAUDA
THE NOBEL
PEACE PRIZE
FOR DENIS
MUKWEGE
H.E.
ZHANG MING
Ambassador
of China
H.E.
E. RODNEY M.
PERERA
Ambassador
of Sri Lanka
H.E.
ELISABETH
KORNFEIND
Ambassador
of Austria
H.E.
LILIAN DARII
Ambasador
of Moldova
H.E.
ASEIN ISAEV
Ambassador
of Kyrgyzstan
Autumn / Winter 2018 www.diplomatic-world.com Quarterly edition
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2

INTERLINKING POLITICS, DIPLOMACY, BUSINESS & FINANCE
ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY, CULTURAL DIPLOMACY & HEALTH
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3

INDEX DIPLOMATIC WORLD 58
6
BENELUX
CELEBRATES ITS
60 TH BIRTHDAY
36
H.E. ASEIN ISAEV
Ambassador
of Kyrgyzstan
66 H.E.
BUDDHI
ATHAUDA
B.U.C.
PROF. DR.
ANTON
VAN DER GELD
10
H.E. LILIAN DARII
Ambassador
of the Republic
of Moldova
42
SHEBA &
UZBEKISTAN 76
16
MARK EYSKENS
Former Belgian
Prime Minister
and Minister of
Foreign Affairs
ISSAM EL-DEBS
Honorary
Consul General
of the Syrian Arab
Republic to the
50 78
Philippines
ANNIVERSARY
CHARITY GALA
The Chaim Sheba
Medical Center
Bellevue Palace Berlin
HERMAN
VAN ROMPUY
President Emeritus
of the
European Council
22
SECOND EURASIAN
WOMEN'S FORUM
COMES TO A CLOSE
IN ST PETERSBURG
52
EUROPEAN
PEACE PILLAR
79
28
H.E. ZHANG MING
Ambassador
of China
to the
European Union
56
GALINA KARELOVA
Deputy Speaker
of the
Federation Council
80
THE NOBEL
PEACE PRIZE
FOR DENIS
MUKWEGE
H.E. ELISABETH
KORNFEIND
Ambassador
of Austria
30
H.E.
DR. AMAL
ABDULLAH
AL QUBAISI
58
RUSSIA
AT THE CENTER
OF THE NEW
GLOBAL
GEOPOLITICAL MAP
82
4
32
H.E. E. RODNEY M.
PERERA
Ambassador
of Sri Lanka
62
MARINA VOLYNKINA
IGUMO
Magic of Pedagogy
86
FEMOZA
FREE ZONE
ASSOCIATION

AUTUMN/WINTER 2018
90
A DIAMOND SILK
ROAD TRAIN
FOR ANTWERP
IN 2020 ?
PRINCESS GISELA
OF LIECHTENSTEIN
Cryptocurrencies
fears and
132 156
opportunities
PEACE MUSEUM
AS PART
OF CULTURE
OF PEACE
WHEN DIVERSITY
FINDS ITS
NATURAL HOME
IN ART
SCALABLE AND
INTERNATIONAL
NEW BUSINESS
MODELS:
MY PEACEFUL
WALK IN SEOUL
Moon Jae-in a
dreamer and
builder of Peace
94 136 158
IT IS POSSIBLE!
in the Peninsula?
102
THE LARGEST
PALACE OF JUSTICE
THE FIRST SHOPPING
MALL
100% DEDICATED TO
140
DIPLOMATS AND
160
IN THE WORLD EXPATS
THE FLOWER
OF THE ROSE
in ornamental mural
paintings of Bulgarian
renaissance houses
from XVIII century
DIPLOMATIC
WORLD
GLOBAL ART
FORUM
Lieve Van Stappen
113
AI WILL BE
OUR PARTNER,
NOT OUR
SUCCESSOR
PROF. DR.
JAN DE MAERE
142
THE INSPIRATIONAL
STORY OF THE ROSE
MADAME ANTOINE
MEILLAND
164
116
THE CURE FOR
PANCREATIC
CANCER MIGHT
VERY WELL
BE ON THE VERGE OF
DISCOVERY
THE RUSSIAN
AVANT-GARDE
AND THE SOUL
OF NATIONS
PROF. DR.
146 JAN DE MAERE 166
PEACE WITH
A PIECE OF CAKE
WALTER VILAIN &
YAO YIZHI
“Melody”
Joint Exhibition
june 29 th 2018
124
BREAD, FRENCH
LEGACY IN ASIA
THE SUCCESS STORY
OF BAKER ERIC
KAYSER
150
FOUNDATION
FRISON HORTA
Restoration.
Preservation. Sharing.
Nupur Tron
170
128
DIPLOMATIC WORLD
INTERVIEW WITH
SERGEY GLAZYEV
154
ROSE D’ANVERS
Introducing the
pentagram
diamond &
the most stunning
rose in the world
172
EMMANUEL ITIER
Producer, Actor,
Director, Writer,
Owner Wonderland
Entertainment
5

BENELUX
THE GOOD LIGHT
OF THE NORTH
BENELUX CELEBRATED ITS
60TH BIRTHDAY
While the European Union attempts to manage the
Brexit crisis and Eurosceptic and nationalist forces
raise their heads in certain EU countries, reinforced
cooperations between members of the EU desiring
to go forward in their project of solidarity are more
indispensable than ever.
To give a new impetus to the European project, the Benelux
has an enviable pedigree, its foundations having been laid
well before those of the EU. Indeed, it was in London
in 1944 that Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg
decided to form a Customs Union, which became an
Economic Union with the Benelux Treaty of 1958.
The Benelux celebrated its 60 th birthday last June 5 th
in Brussels in the presence of the three Heads of State:
the Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, King Willem-
Alexander of the Netherlands and King Philippe of
Belgium. This illustrious milestone gave the opportunity to
measure how this alliance had stimulated the construction
of the European Union, and to conclude that it still had
a beautiful future ahead of it: "Ever greener and younger
Benelux".
liberty and solidarity in our continent’s history: "Noblesse
Oblige". It is in this context of reviving the Benelux
cooperation that I would like to share some thoughts on the
link between the Benelux and the European project, under
the title of "Benelux, the good light of the North".
These reflections will focus on three themes: the new
paradigms at the origin of the European project, the
pioneering role of the Benelux within this project and,
finally, what enabled the Benelux to play this role, its
"DNA".
THE EUROPEAN UNION, IN ITS BREAK WITH
A TRAGIC HISTORY, WAS INDEED FOUNDED
ON A CHANGE OF PARADIGM IN AT LEAST
TWO WAYS:
6
This role as pioneer and laboratory of Europe is recognised
by article 350 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the
European Union, which allows the Benelux to derogate from
certain European rules, provided that the Benelux is more
advanced in the cooperation and integration in its project
and that the derogation is essential for the implementation
of the cross-border project.
Consequently, the Benelux Union enjoys a unique position
within the European Union: this is a privilege but also a
responsibility towards the most remarkable project of peace,
- A redefinition of what should constitute peace
- The transition from nationalism to patriotism
The word peace comes from the Latin “pax”, sharing a
common root with the word “pacta”. For the Romans,
peace proceeded from a pact, an agreement, a legal, formal
and univocal convention sometimes imposed by force
(pax romana). This rule, intended to make life in common
possible, is translated into laws that justice will enforce.
The adage "Pacta servanda sunt" highlights the imperative
character of the rule of law.

King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, King Philippe of Belgium and the Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg.
European culture being the heritage of both Greco-Roman
and Judeo-Christian traditions, the idea of peace also
comes from the Semitic root "Shalom" (SLM) drawn from
the Hebrew verb "lehashlim" which means to complete,
fulfill, reconcile. This verb implies anintersubjective,
dynamic action of personnel engagement, of mutual
recognition (symbol) and even of hospitality. Peace is based
on the recognition that we need others to fulfill ourselves.
This peace is founded on a completeness that also evokes
the sweet alliance of lovers and the fecundity of their
encounter.
This dynamic conception of peace is thus based on a shared
project, an active engagement, a respectful recognition and
even a desire of the other, in his salutary otherness, his
irreducible difference. The symbolics of peace, its hospitality
are based on a shared conception of mankind, of a mutual
recognition of everyone’s singularity, source of a natural law.
The face of the other breaks the mirror of narcissism.
THUS UNITY CANNOT BUT BE CONCEIVED
IN RESPECT OF DIVERSITY (“IN VARIETATE
CONCORDIA”, MOTTO OF THE EU).
We therefore see how the two spiritual traditions of
Europe enrich our understanding of what peace should be:
the rational approach commands that the rules of life in
common be clearly set forth, unequivocal in terms of rights
and obligations, but this formal peace cannot last without
its relational counterpart, i.e. a desire for mutual respect, a
recognition of my need of the other expressed in hospitality
and personal engagement.
These two approaches, rational and relational, are each
indispensable and complementary for advancing towards an
enduring and productive peace.
Such was the inspiration of the Founding Fathers of Europe,
who were also able to ban nationalism and — to quote
Robert Schuman — "free borders of their pernicious
character"; i.e. rid Europe from nationalism to the benefit
of a renewed European patriotism.
Indeed, nationalism, with Nazism as its most tragic
avatar, illustrates the confusion of rational and
relational discourses. Nationalism amounts to giving
an objective character to a subjective and perfectly
legitimate discourse, that of patriotism: the patriotic
sentiment is a legitimate pride based on love, that of
relatives, of ancestors and of what they bequeathed to us,
patriotism is simultaneously subjective, singular (Ubi bene,
ibi patria) and shared, without exclusivity. It is not an
impersonal or rational discourse and it does not enter into
competition with that of another person (each one loves
7

King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, King Philippe of Belgium and the Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg.
his relatives and admires this sentiment in others; as the fifth
commandment of the Hebrew Decalogue recalls: "Honour
your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the
land that the Lord your God is giving you." What a beautiful
summary of patriotism, linking gratitude and country !
On the contrary, nationalism, which is a expression
of political narcissism, maintains a rational and thus
opposable discourse (therefore open to polemics)
based on exclusivity and allegedly superior qualities, all
possibly substantiated by pseudo-scientific argumentation.
Nationalism often has as an economic corollary:
protectionism or even autarchy; the project of autarchy is
to refuse to depend on others and, on a strategic level, to
prepare for war.
in 1948, Economic Union in 1958) in order to arrive at
politics (Benelux Union in 2008). The Fathers of Europe
would follow precisely the same path beginning with the
CECA and the Common Market.
As a consequence of these paradigm changes, Europe, cured of
nationalism, can no longer become an empire; its vocation is to
be a house, not a fortress. In ancient Greek, a house is called
Oikos, from which derive the terms economy and ecology. This
root evokes a project of hospitality, where resources are placed
at the service of a humanist and welcoming society. A market
economy, but not a market society.
THE BENELUX ANTICIPATED THE EUROPEAN
PARADIGM SHIFT, AND UNDOUBTEDLY
INSPIRED IT AS WELL.
8
Thus, trade, if it is equitable, can be a factor of peace
because, by exchanging with others, I recognise their
utility, their talents; I need them (lehashlim). The theory
of comparative advantage, as explained by the British
economist David Ricardo in the early 19 th century, justified
and inspired England's policy of free trade.
It is because they understood this pacifying role of trade
(“le doux commerce” according to Montesquieu: l'effet
naturel du commerce est de porter à la paix (Montesquieu,
De l'esprit des lois, 1758)) that the founders of the Benelux
started out from economics (Benelux Customs Union
The project of a free trade zone and customs
union was negotiated during World War II by the Belgian,
Dutch and Luxembourg governments in exile. It was based
on a vision of complementarity, of solidarity between the
states of Europe. While Europe was again being torn apart
by the claws of exacerbated nationalism, the three Ministers
of Foreign Affairs Spaak, van Kleffens and Bech, compelled
their finance and agriculture experts to focus on the long
term and to surpass the logic of zero-sum games and old
rivalries. The project of a Benelux Custom Union was
launched in 1944 and came into being in 1948.

IT IS IN THE IRON AND FIRE OF WAR THAT
THE PEACEFUL ALLOY OF THE BENELUX WAS
FORGED.
Starting from economics, (Treaty of Benelux Economic
Union in 1958) to arrive at politics, the new treaty of Benelux
Union was signed in 2008, to enter into force on 1 January
2012, providing for intensified cross border cooperation
between the three countries in the following fields:
· Internal market and Economy
· Security and Society
· Digitalization and Durability as two core-binding factors
Let us recall a few figures: with 28.5 million inhabitants
(5.6%) and an average GDP of 36,000 €/year (7.9%), the
Benelux is the 5 th largest European economic power. It
must be stressed that the complementarity between the
three countries is not static, we are not dealing with puzzle
pieces that fit together perfectly, but rather with projects for
creating cross-border value chains, based on comparative
advantage. This complementarity is also open: the Benelux
cooperates intensively for now 10 years with the Land
Nordrhein Westfalen and more and more with the French
regions of Hauts de France and Grand Est.
Benelux has thus been the pioneer of "an ever-closer union
among the peoples of Europe", to cite the preamble of the
Treaty of Rome. From the very start the Benelux defended
this position in the face of protectionist or nationalist
temptations; at Schengen in 1985, the Benelux signed with
France and Germany an agreement that would gradually
be extended to virtually all of Europe, permitting the
free movement of persons and thus reinforcing European
citizenship and patriotism.
SO WHAT IS THE DNA OF THE BENELUX, WHAT
IS ITS "GENUS", NOT TO SAY ITS GENIUS?
That of transcending zero-sum games; this is also called
creativity, imagination, the rejection of sterile rivalries, as
attested by the prosperity and the rich artistic heritage of
the 17 provinces. Our tradition is innovation.
Tolerance, with a tradition of political asylum:
multilingualism encourages empathy; tolerance must not be
passive, but rather an attitude of respect towards the others
(lehashlim).
Pragmatism: no cults of personality or fanatical nationalism;
humanity (and humor) takes precedence over ideology.
Patience: in these regions where nature is not overly
Thomas Antoine
generous, nothing is built but in the long term; let us for
example admire how the Dutch reclaimed their country
from the sea!
Trade, as the fair exchange between goods and people;
the XVII Provinces were free traders, following England's
example and Montesquieu’s thought.
A profound determination: "One need not to hope in order
to undertake, nor to succeed in order to persevere". The
motto of William de Nassau reflects the mentality of the
peoples of the Benelux.
These virtues are at the service of a peaceful ideal, of
a prudent yet determined humanism, and they express
themselves via a culture of dialogue. This lays the field for
an intense cross border cooperation.
Traditionally, there has been no nationalism in the Benelux,
but instead loyal patriotisms, which sometimes take a
regional form.
Today, the Benelux, in a difficult European context, is
working on concrete projects for combating Euroscepticism
and hostility to the EU, of which Brexit is one regrettable
illustration. In this challenging period, the Benelux must
preserve its relevance by remaining true to its vocation.
Nomen est omen, each name bears a destiny, "Benelux" can
evoke a "good light", this gentle light of the North so highly
valued by artists, because it illuminates without blinding; it
leads us to the mystery of the human, as do the paintings
of Rembrandt or Vermeer.
In conclusion, I hope that the Benelux, conscious of
its humanist heritage and its responsibilities, will continue
to illuminate the path for Europe.
Thomas Antoine
Secretary General of the Benelux Union
9

STATEMENT
BY PROF. DR. ANTON VAN DER GELD
ON THE ‘FOUNDATION
BENELUX-UNIVERSITY'
GUIDED BY HIS MOTTO:
‘LIVING BY THE POWER OF
IMAGINATION AND RENEWAL’
The Benelux Union is celebrating its 60 th anniversary, at
the same moment the ‘Foundation BeNeLux-University'
(in Dutch: ‘BeNeLux-Universitair Centrum’ or ‘B.U.C.’)
celebrates its 30 th anniversary. In the Foundation’s coat of
arms — next to its name and the description of ‘BeNeLux
Study Center’ — a representation can be found of ‘Psyche’
and of the ‘Book of Wisdom’, with earthly and heavenly
blue colors according to its artistic design. This is also
referring to the harmony between mind, feelings and
emotions necessary in all human life and work.
This coat of arms also contains the words Scientiae et
Artibus: ‘For Science and Arts’. Diplomatic World sat
together with Professor Dr. Anton van der Geld, Founder
and President of the Foundation BeNeLux-University, and
invited him to tell us the story of his crucial Foundation.
“I have always had a deep interest in Belgium, as I
originate from and am still living in the South of the
Netherlands, around ’s-Hertogenbosch. I studied at the
Universities of Utrecht, Tilburg and Leuven, completing
three studies.
So I have always had a deep interest in the Benelux
cooperation and then the idea rose to give it a special
impulse by founding an independent institute to promote
cultural, educational and scientific collaboration. Several
contacts and conversations contributed to my idea of
a university center. I discussed with the first Minister-
President of Flanders (after the first Belgian state reform)
Dr. Gaston Geens, who I knew well, and with Brussels
‘Secretary of State’ Dr. Vic Anciaux, who was also a
medical professional. In the Netherlands I often discussed
my ideas with Professor Piet Steenkamp, President of
the Senate, and with the Dutch Ambassador to the USA,
residing in Washington DC. And this was the beginning of
the Foundation BeNeLux-University for education, science,
culture and humanity in Europe. And with these advisers
the Foundation was safe.
10
In the eighties I was appointed at the University of
Leuven. I have always been deeply interested in the
cooperation between Belgium and the Netherlands, and
automatically also Luxembourg. I also participated in a
few culture and art societies. In Leuven this involvement
became only stronger. During these years I also met the
eminent Professor Mark Eyskens, still Minister of Foreign
Affairs around that time. We were both professor with a
special status, being only one day a week at the University
of Leuven, and there we further strengthened our
acquaintance by a continuous collaboration and
friendship.
Prof. Dr. Anton van der Geld

Ambassador H.E. Chris Hoornaert (B), Prof. Dr. Anton van der Geld, Ambassador H.E. Maryem van den Heuvel (NL), Prins Charles Adrien de Merode,
Ambassador H.E. Jean-Marc Hoscheit (Lux).
Also my wife, Cily Nouwens was very collaborative in this
process and active inside the Foundation. In addition, our
three children, Pieter, Lucienne and Christian, have been
active as volunteers for the Foundation from the start and
still are actively participating on a voluntary basis. My son
Pieter, a dentist and psychologist, is my intended successor
as President of the Board of the Foundation.
After the death of Cily we have founded and named
a foundation in remembrance of her: the ‘Foundation
Cily van der Geld-Nouwens Fund’ advancing the (re)
humanization of society (in Dutch: ‘Stichting Cily van
der Geld-Nouwens Fonds’). Further information on this
foundation can be found on the website of the Foundation
BeNeLux-University (note of Diplomatic World: the
website is stated at the end of the Professor’s statement).
Thus we intended to give a special and concrete impulse to
the cooperation and friendship between the three Benelux
countries: not just doing something, but establishing a
content and focusing on a practical contribution. Two
pillars were therefore established. The first pillar was
social-cultural and focused on humanity: we planned
to organize meetings and symposia, in order to bring
different societies from the three countries together. The
second pillar was educational and academic: we planned
to target specific groups in the Benelux: the group of
medical professionals, the group of police and juridical
professionals and the group of management administrators,
teachers and policy advisors. Our related intention and
goal was to provide these groups of professionals in
Foundation BeNeLux-University with complementary,
common trainings and educations and promotion of
expertise.
So we created three Course Locations: we started at the
University of Antwerp, the University of Eindhoven and the
University — still a Center at that time — of Luxembourg.
The most remarkable aspect of our trainings was bringing
together, in correspondence with the subject of the training,
the specialists on this specific subject from the Netherlands
and Belgium in a study group. They received education
and formation on a specific subject, part-time during one
or more years. In this way we created rapprochement and
cooperation in the Benelux through the collaboration of
these groups of professionals in a specific field.
These courses worked indeed very well in our view: we
organized even Master courses. In the course rooms
professionals from Belgium and the Netherlands were sitting
next to each other. So we created Benelux cooperation and
friendship amongst these professionals as a sustainable
11

approchement at the basis. It is remarkable how regularly
and how intensively former course participants have found
in this way the path towards more professional cooperation
and also friendship in the Benelux countries.
Our efforts in the Benelux did not go unnoticed. Contacts
also arose with the Royal Families of Belgium and the
Netherlands. At the official visit of the incoming Crown
Prince Filip, the Governor of North Brabant, Mr. Frank
Houben, asked me to give a speech to Prince Filip on the
occasion of his acceptance of the title of new Duke of
Brabant.
In 2006, Princess Astrid of Belgium presented together
with me the ‘BeNeLux-Europe Prize’ (In Dutch: BeNeLux-
Europa Prijs) to Honorary Ministers Jacques Santer and
Bernard Bot. In 2005 I presented the ‘BeNeLux-Europe
Prize’ to Professor Pieter van Vollenhoven, member of
the Dutch Royal Family, together with our Counselor
the Belgian Prince Charles-Louis de Merode. Prof. Pieter
van Vollenhoven also joined our Foundation as a Patron,
followed a few years later by Princess Lea of ​Belgium as
Patroness. Count Herman Van Rompuy is also Patron of
the Foundation BeNeLux-University.
Awarding the ‘BeNeLux-Europe Prize’ has undeniably
become an important event. The Prize is awarded to
persons or institutions that have performed exceptionally
well for Benelux cooperation and Benelux friendship. This
year we presented the Prize in the City Hall of Eindhoven
to the Belgian Ambassador H.E. Chris Hoornaert, the
Dutch Ambassador H.E. Maryem van den Heuvel and the
Luxembourg Ambassador H.E. Jean-Marc Hoscheit.
Previous recipients of this Prize were amongst others
Jean-Claude Juncker, Herman Van Rompuy, Pieter
van Vollenhoven, Jan Peter Balkenende, Guy Verhofstadt,
Willem van Eekelen, Marianne Thyssen, Maria van der
Hoeven, Lydie Polfer, Neelie Kroes, Herman De Croo,
Frits Korthals Altes, Viviane Reding, Bernard Wientjes,
Piet Hein Donner, Kris Peeters, Frans Timmermans.
In the City Hall of Eindhoven Dutch and Belgian Justice
and Police professionals received this year also their
postgraduate certificate of our Foundation BeNeLux Study
Center. During an entire year they followed the same
courses and worked closely together in the course rooms.
And then you see what the final results are, then you see
the output. These courses had truly great consequences in
practice.
12
Former Premiers Mark Eyskens (B) and Jan Peter Balkenende (NL) within the B.U.C.

Senator Andre Postema, Minister of State Mark Eyskens, Barbara Dietrich, CEO Diplomatic World, Consul Monique De Decker-Deprez,
Prof. Dr. Anton van der Geld, Former Premier Jan Peter Balkenende, Ambassador H.E. Chris Hoornaert (B), Prins Charles Adrien de Merode,
Ambassador H.E. Jean-Marc Hoscheit (Lux).
When we just started, there was actually little direct
and personal contact between the Police and Justice
professionals from the Netherlands and those from Belgium.
I can still remember the time when the Attorney General of
Antwerp had almost no personal contact with the Attorney
General in ’s-Hertogenbosch. In this perspective, we have
been collaborative. In recent years smooth cooperation
between the Police and Justice professionals in the
Netherlands and in Belgium is perceived as normal, but at
the beginning of the Foundation BeNeLux-University this
was not always the case.
Let us go back to the beginning of our Foundation: the
organization and teaching of Post-graduate and Master
classes. We have organized many Master courses, according
to the Anglo-Saxon system, in collaboration with several
American and British Universities, until the moment the
Universities in the Benelux picked up these Master’s Degree
programs after the Bologna Declaration. We therefore
decided to focus on other forms of Post-graduate education
and on a few practice-based chairs.
We were able to make many people enthusiastic, also
Minister of State Mark Eyskens, Prince Charles-Louis
de Merode, former Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende and
other prominent persons. The Foundation has also evolved in
a very personal way, because it has no external funding.
We are (working) independent, self-supporting and partly pro
deo. We only receive humble revenues from the courses, and
we are keeping these course fees intentionally low. It is more
important to bring various professionals together to help
them advance in their area of expertise than to make profit.
We were also able to establish in the Foundation BeNeLux-
University Center a pleasant and work friendly context, in
which at a certain time more than seventy professors from
the Benelux were welcomed. They come regularly to us for
teaching a specific course and are enjoying the absence of
possible tensions and the presence of a more democratic
model.
They all chose for a collegial community with the President
of the Foundation as team leader. From there I have always
been confronted with a kind of difficulty: I am not only
the President of the Board of the Foundation, but also in a
way the Rector. The affiliated professors and participants
expressed the wish to combine these functions. This makes
it possible for them to have a personal and direct line with
the Foundation. This combination of two functions creates
a heavy workload.
13

14
Our Foundation has various activities in the three countries,
which have also evolved over the years. In this way the
accents have been shifted over time. The creation and
installation of a special Chair for ‘Society and Culture’ in
the Benelux countries played an important role in this.
I founded this Chair in 1994 and offered it to the Benelux
Parliament, meeting in the ‘Ridderzaal’ (Knights Hall) in
The Hague. It is a partnership between our Foundation and
the Benelux Parliament. Minister of State Mark Eyskens is
the main titular. The chair is installed separately in the three
countries, likewise in Luxembourg during the ceremony
there in 1995.
Since many years, courses for doctors are being held
in Luxembourg to specialize further in the fields of
Gerontology and Alzheimer. Therefore a special agreement
has been concluded between the Luxembourg Government
and our Foundation. In Luxembourg, we were allowed to
play a constructive role, helping the Center to evolve into a
full-scale University, with the assistance of the University
of Trier.
We organized a beautiful event at this occasion, in the
presence of the Government of Luxembourg and with a
large media attention. At this occasion we awarded also
the distinction of the BeNeLux-Europe Prize to the Prime
Minister of Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the
Minister of Education, Erna Hennicot-Schoepges, and the
Minister of Social Security, Marie-Josée Jacobs. These
courses in Luxembourg are still running. We have, as
previously said, an agreement with the Luxembourg State,
with two Ministers: they organize the administration and
the finances, which is for us welcome, because we don’t
have a large staff. In Belgium and the Netherlands we have
been focusing on the fields of Police, Justice and Public
Administration, over the past years.
In Belgium, there was till recently a course on
psychotherapy, for the further training of doctors and
psychologists. There is also a Chair for ‘Man and Labor’.
After a short interruption, I am for the Foundation strongly
active again in the fields of ‘people, labor and sustainability’.
We still have many ideas and plans. There is also the Chair
for ‘Army and Society’.
Our Chairs are strongly focusing on the practice. Therefore
we are describing these Chairs also as practice chairs, in
contrast to the universities with the capacities to start large
and fundamental researches. This is not possible for us:
as a study center, we are focusing on the research and the
development of the practice, of professional fields.
In practice, many professionals and supervisors scarcely
come to the human aspects. How to act in the light of
human dignity, is the central question. Precisely in this time,
this is an important aspect. The ‘B.U.C.’ offers trainings
and education to 'people counselors' who work in various
locations in the Benelux. ‘People counseling’ (coaching) is
a separate course in which good communication plays an
essential role. This course combines applied humanities,
cultural knowledge and human values.
Modern techniques and science lift our society to an even
higher level: the intervention in life becomes reality and
the 'makeable' man comes into view. That sounds maybe
nice, but are we on the way to a reality in which man can
sometimes no longer recognize himself? There is a growing
need for attention for the human aspect in work and
development, in life and in death. It is an appreciation for
diversity in civilizations.
There we intend to make a considerable contribution
to the well-being of the society in the Benelux, through
‘imaginative power and renewal’ quoting the motto of
the Foundation BeNeLux-University or ‘B.U.C.’ and
my personal motto also. The ‘B.U.C.’ has four pillars:
permanent education is the first pillar, helping to educate
people personally and in a continuous way. The other
three pillars are related to a certain inspiration from out
of which we can achieve this education: science, culture
and humanity. We intend to distinguish ourselves by the
inspiration coming from these three pillars, in order to
influence society and people positively and take the best
decision about our actions and aspirations.
Working from this idea a truly imaginative power can be
built up, which allows us to achieve renewal in many fields.
The society is rapidly changing and there are various new
problems. Now it is the challenge to focus our attention on
these changes and problems and find humane solutions.
We have to renew society in many fields. And therefore
we need imaginative power that will bring the necessary
renewal leading to even stronger imaginative power in
practice: both are needed and are inseparably connected in
my view. This philosophy is at the heart of the Foundation
BeNeLux-University."

Monique De Decker-Deprez, Barbara Dietrich and Prof. Dr. Anton van der Geld
The Foundation’s mission is about the human values of
humanity, well-being, love and happiness, giving priority to
cultural optimism. In this context, several inspiring books
have been published by Prof. Anton van der Geld: 'Your life
is yours', 'Balance in our life', 'Your lifestyle from heart and
soul'. At the moment he is working on his 10 th book about
'Inspiration and the Art of Living'. Health, well-being and
happiness in life are of utmost importance to everyone.
Prof. Dr. Anton van der Geld received three Royal Honors
in the Benelux in recognition of his meritorious services:
Great Officer in the Leopold Order (Belgium), Knight in
the Dutch Lion (the Netherlands) and Commander in the
Oak Crown (Luxembourg).
The non-profit organization ‘BeNeLux-Universitair
Centrum’ (‘B.U.C.’) or ‘Foundation BeNeLux-University’
was established in 1988. The Foundation intends to help
improving the quality of society in the Benelux, in the
perspective of the European integration.
The Foundation is independent, self-supporting and
idealistic in nature and creates through its institutions a
framework for cooperation in the Benelux, reflected also
in its organization.
Founding President is Prof. Dr. Anton van der Geld;
Special Counsels to the Foundation are the Ambassador
of Belgium H.E. Chris Hoornaert, the Ambassador of
Luxembourg H.E. Jean-Marc Hoscheit, Minister of State
Mark Eyskens, Prince Charles-Louis de Merode and
Minister of State Jaime Saleh.
Coordinator of the College of Laureates is former Dutch
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende. Lord Protectors
are Count Herman Van Rompuy, President Emeritus of
the European Council, and Prof. Pieter van Vollenhoven,
Member of the Dutch Royal family.
Lady Protector is H.R.H. Princess Lea of Belgium.
President of the ‘BeNeLux Europe Circle’ is Minister
of State Prof. Mark Eyskens for Belgium and former
Minister Dr. Willem van Eekelen for the Netherlands;
Vice President of the Circle for the Netherlands is
Henk Morsink, Honorary Adjutant-General to the
King of the Netherlands, and for Belgium Honorary
Consul of Sri Lanka Monique De Decker-Deprez.
www.benelux-universitair-centrum.org
15

VIEWS OF MARK EYSKENS
ON THE BENELUX AND
ON CURRENT EUROPEAN
AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
FORMER BELGIAN PRIME MINISTER
AND MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
MORE THAN 60 YEARS OF BENELUX
In fact the 60th birthday of BENELUX could be fake news.
Actually the BENELUX is much older. The idea of creating
a bond started already at the end of the Second World War
in London when the three governments of Belgium, the
Netherlands and Luxemburg, were in exile in London and
realized that a new form of cooperation and an intense
relationship starting from an economic and commercial
union would be necessary to protect the interests of the
three countries. But also financially it could be a tool to
coordinate the fluctuations of the rates of exchange of
the involved currencies. These ideas were in a later phase
implemented in European treaties and today we could state
that the BENELUX started as an experimental lab for the
later integration of the European Union. The BENELUX
was an incubator for what later happened. The most
important treaty related to the BENELUX celebrated its
60th anniversary a few weeks ago in Brussels.
EUROPEAN INTEGRATION AND THE IDEA
OF SUBSIDIARITY
During this period European Summits were organised
with only 12 member states: it was in the years just before
and after the Cold War. Ministers knew each other in a
very intimate way: we phoned each other in a direct way,
before smartphones existed and we met on a regular basis
face-to-face, formally but also informal. Sometimes in
beautiful castles and other enclosed environments where
confidentiality was the rule. These first confidential meetings
were called the gimmick meetings, always following the
Chatham House Rule, where the presence of the participants
was not disclosed. Journalists were far away. We succeeded
in breakthrough compromises that were at the end essential
for the future development of the European Union.
16
As far as the BENELUX University Center (B.U.C.) is
concerned: this is a rather old idea. It stems from the
Netherlands and was created by Professor van der Geld
who is a very dynamic man. He is in fact a psychologist and
involved in coaching people and organizations. His idea was
to have the BENELUX idea imbedded in university circles,
to make professors of the three countries disperse their
ideas to students of the other countries. I have an important
chair in the B.U.C. and from time to time I am invited in the
Netherlands, Belgium or in Luxembourg to explain the state
and activities of the BENELUX. When I was a minister —
I have been active in different Belgian governments for 16
years — I was always impressed by the coherence and the
creativity of the BENELUX.
Mark Eyskens

Barbara Dietrich and Mark Eyskens
In my career I have known several Presidents of the
European Commission, but the most creative, impressive and
daring one was Jacques Delors. He was President during 10
years. He just had one handicap: his English was not good,
so he kept speaking French, which was still a dominating
language in diplomatic Europe. Arriving at meetings he
was always carrying a small notebook in his pocket. While
opening it he said: ‘Last night I couldn’t sleep very well
but I came up with an idea’, proposing either a solution
for a problem, or new initiatives, starting the discussion. I
remember a crucial meeting on the Treaty of Maastricht in
Ireland, after the fall of the Berlin Wall. We were completely
blocked by the attitude of the British, Margaret Thatcher
and her Minister of Foreign Affairs Douglas Hurt being
absolutely opposed to the transfer of political sovereignty
to the ‘bureaucrats in Brussels’. Jacques Delors said: ‘When
I was a young student I got a lecture on the social doctrine
of the Catholic Church.’ When he was young, Delors had
been a syndicate militant in the Christian Union, studying
the social doctrine of the Catholic Church and a crucial
concept in that doctrine is subsidiarity. For the Catholics it
related to the Catholic school system. The Catholics wanted
to protect their schools and declared that ‘Schools have
to be independent, totally autonomous, except when they
are unable to realize things by themselves: at that moment
government could intervene’. This concept limited the
intervention of the government.
Can we perhaps apply the concept of subsidiarity to Europe?
Nations continue to do what they can do, but as soon as
they can’t — because we are becoming more and more
interdependent — then they call on a higher level: and that
will be the European Commission, the European Council
or the European Institutions. Ms Thatcher replied she
would consider this. And after a break in the negotiation
process she said: ‘I can live with that’. The concept of
subsidiarity became part of the Treaty of Maastricht and a
key to the solution. Great Britain remained in the European
boat although their interpretation of subsidiarity was a
different from ours. For us subsidiarity meant that as
many competences as possible should be transferred to a
higher level. For the British it was the contrary: to keep the
maximum of competences at the lower level of the national
states. Today all this is questioned and perhaps over with the
Brexit.
17

THE BENELUX AS A LAB OF IDEAS
I believe that more than ever the BENELUX should play
the role of a lab of ideas and a broker of compromises as it
was the case in the past. Given the present situation, which
is extremely difficult, I think the three BENELUX countries
could try to build a solid bridge between the two most
important countries in the Union: France and Germany. The
relation between the two major players depends often upon
the electoral success in both countries. The government of
Ms Merkel is weakened today. The BENELUX has a proven
record to propose solutions.
Yesterday morning I had a meeting with Manfred Weber,
president of the Group of the EPP in the European
Parliament. And he explained the intricacies of the
European attitude of the different political parties in
Germany. And we had the same problems in the
BENELUX: in the Netherlands the Christian Democrats
are less European minded than we are in Belgium and
in Flanders. But this could be also a kind of enrichment
by comparing our positions and trying to find a common
denominator. So we have several problems in Europe today
starting with a lack of leadership. The time of Adenauer
and Robert Schuman is the past. But I am convinced that
French and German leaders supported by the ideas of the
BENELUX, could propose something intelligent resulting
in a new model of coherence and consensus within the
European Union.
The migration problem is an extremely complex problem.
We have to face three categories of immigration. First the
war refugees: they have to be protected by article 3 of the
European Treaty of Human Rights and they can get asylum
when they fulfill well defined conditions. We have to share
this responsibility. The number of asylum seekers has
decreased in a spectacular way: in two years it has decreased
by more than 40% which we should be able to control.
Secondly we are confronted with the economic refugees.
How to make the difference between an economic and a
political refugee? What about ethics and morality? When
you are starving in your country why not immigrate to our
wealthy nations? In parallel politicians should explain to the
public that the European demography is going down in a
rapid way, particularly in Germany.
At the end of this century, we will be confronted in Europe
with a demographic deficit of minus 50 million people due
to the phenomenon of the aging of the population — which
is a very expensive burden because of health services —
and the lack of young people. The youth are needed for
the labor market and to balance our social security. Birth
rates in Europe have fallen down, so we need young people
coming from outside Europe and organize this influx. We
need a selective policy of immigration, capable to integrate,
responding to vacant jobs on the labor market.
Without the demagogy of populism. The BENELUX could
play a moderating role by practicing political pedagogy,
explaining to the population what the situation is and what
the long term problems are.
18
I remember that Foreign Ministers of Eastern European
countries like the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and even
Hungary would interrogate me: ‘How does the BENELUX
work? Could we do the same in the Eastern part of Europe?’
In result the VISEGRAD countries were founded similar to
the BENELUX.
Secondly, the enormous challenge of immigration could
completely destabilize the European Union if each country
is applying its own measures in order to protect its own
borders which leads to a negative disruption of the European
Union. In the BENELUX we have an extensive experience
of migration. After WWII Belgium attracted a lot of Italians
and Turks, as miners. The Italians moved in general to
Wallonia and the Turks to the Province of Limburg. Recently
during the Turkish elections many of these very well
integrated Turks in Limburg were voting for Erdogan, but
also for the opposition, which led to campaign fights in the
streets of Hasselt and other villages in Limburg.
The problem of a democracy is that democracies function
on a short term basis with elections every four to five years.
On the other hand long term problems have an horizon
of 20/25 years. Take the climate: we urgently have to take
measures in order to reduce the warming of the planet for
the next decades. In general voters vote for the short term.
And politicians want to be re-elected. We have dysfunctions
of democracy due to the friction or conflict between short
term and long term problems and solutions, the revolution
of digitalization and the fact that everyone is active and
online all the time. We are evolving towards a formula of
government led by a permanent opinion poll. All political
parties test public opinion every day. When a measure
is unpopular it is bound not to happen and in a way this
weakens democracy. I hear the stories and I read in writings
that strong regimes with authoritarian governments and
leaders are more and more appreciated. In Italy, some are
calling back the figure of ‘Il Duce’ Mussolini. President Putin
has also many sympathies.

Mark Eyskens
I have already proposed to modify our voting system. I am a
great defender of the Belgian obligatory voting system. Take
for instance the case of Donald Trump in the United States:
he has been elected by 26% of the potential American voters
because 48% didn’t show up. The Brexit was only approved
by 36% of the potential British voters because 30% didn’t
go and cast their vote. So these are minorities, overrunning
and overturning completely the economic mechanism and
political situation. We are obliged to go and vote as in
Greece and Luxembourg.
Secondly, we only have one vote: one man or woman, one
vote. In many countries you have many political parties,
which results in a great volatility on the political market
and a big and intense competition between parties. And
people change. In the past 20/30 years children voted
like their parents for the same political parties. But that
situation has changed. In Brussels, for federal elections you
have approximately 13 different parties with hundreds of
candidates and thousands of focus points in their electoral
programs. But you have only one vote to decide.
At the end you vote for one party and when that party steps
in the government with at least two or three other parties we
create a coalition government with four parties. This means
the party you voted for, can only realize a smaller part of
its program, which could frustrate the voter. The party
cannot apply entirely what they promised because they are
in a government with other parties. I am in favor of what I
call ‘point voting’. Don’t give one vote to each voter, but for
instance ten or twenty votes. And he could spread his votes
like he or she wants for different candidates and different
parties.The voter, by spreading his votes, is constructing
the coalition and weakening the power of the presidents
of political parties. I received a lot of criticism and one of
the major criticisms was that technically this would be very
difficult to organize. But in times of computerization and
digitalization, I think that this should be feasible. We have to
(re-)think this election case over and the BENELUX could
become a lab to propose an improved alternative of our
democracy.
THE ROLE OF THE BENELUX IN CURRENT
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
During Cold War, we lived in a bipolar world with two
blocks. The fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold
War without using arms was almost a miracle in history.
Thanks to courageous leaders as Gorbachev, Mitterand,
Thatcher and George Bush Sr. After 1989 the world became
multipolar with fewer large countries: the United States,
China, Japan, the European Union and Russia dominating
the field. Today there is disorder and chaos in international
19

20
relations where alliances are changing according to the
topic of the day, One could speak about an ‘a-polar’ world,
without a significant polarity. Due to the presidency of
Donald Trump and his behaviour the United States are
politically weakened. They are no longer taken seriously.
Whereas China is making an enormous effort, although
they have some economic problems and although — once
you travel through China and you go into the villages — it
is still a bit of a developing country. But in cities welfare
is increasing and in parallel the development of digital
industries is widespread. This will have an economic impact
on other continents and industries. The car industry in
Europe, particularly the German car industry, has been
strongly hit by Dieselgate scandal that will cost a fortune.
Volkswagen has to pay one billion euro. Meanwhile the
technological and market shift from gas engines to electrical
cars is happening today. The Chinese have decided to ban
all their gasoil driven cars by the latest in 2030 and replace
them by electrical cars. They are now already manufacturing
electrical cars for export to Europe at an extremely
reasonable price: 15 000 euro for a fully electronical car.
This will become a deadly competition for the European car
makers.
The Belt and Road Initiative is another major Chinese
project, rebuilding the Silk Road of the Middle Ages, and
bridging China to Europe. In this context China has already
acquired big stakes in the harbour of Piraeus/Athens and is
building a railway from Peking and Shanghai to Europe with
a huge impact on costs. Costs will decrease and be lower
than maritime costs. The train connection will go to the sea
ports of Northern Europe: Antwerp, Rotterdam, Hamburg,
Rostov, Gdansk, increasing competition. We are living in a
disruptive world and looking at the global map, Europe is
a small peninsula hanging on the Eurasian continent up to
Siberia and Vladivostok.
With Russia we have to be more constructive. We should
also have the moral courage to imagine if we were in the
same situation as the Russians after the end of the Cold
War: the explosion of the Soviet Union and the implosion
of Communism. Russia lost their ideology and lost 12
republics, evolving from provinces in the Soviet Union to
independent countries. For me the annexation of the Crimea
is a footnote and knowing that the Crimea was given to
Ukraine when it was still a province of the Soviet Union
under Khrushchev. The referendum in the Crimea gave a
majority of 95% in favor of the annexation by Russia. I don’t
believe that sanctions are efficient and are not worthwhile.
The Russians and President Putin today and all his
predecessors, beginning with Gorbachev have a history of
feeling cheated by the Western countries, the United States
and Europe. In 1989-1990, after the fall of the Berlin Wall,
the Western Ministers, obtained from Gorbachev that he
accepted the reunification of both Germanies, becoming
a full member of the European Union. The Americans
added that Germany should also become a member of
NATO. For Gorbachev this was a bridge too far. "We are
now dismantling the Warsaw Pact. You should do the
same with NATO and you should at least neutralize a
reunified Germany within NATO: so no American basis, no
nuclear weapons on the territory of the big Germany". The
European countries were divided. But Bush Sr said: ‘No, that
is impossible, that we cannot accept.’ Helmut Kohl took also
a very strong position: 'If the price for the reunification of
my country is that my country should become neutral, then
I refuse reunification.' President Bush and his Minister of
Foreign Affairs Jimmy Baker, a very intelligent man, would
solve the situation with Gorbachev face-to-face proposing
a re-election scheme with Gorbachev, at that moment the
first elected President of Russia. By influencing the supply
and demand and subsequently the market prices of oil in
collaboration with the oil producing countries in the Middle
East, which also had a parallel impact on the Russian gas
prices. Enabling Russia to create income by augmenting
gas prices, Gorbachev would be able to invest, increase
employment rates, build new companies, and finally be
re-elected. In this scheme unified Germany would become
a full member of NATO again.The first months the oil
prices remained stable and on a rising level. But as from
the fourth month oil prices started to decrease and even
collapsing within six months going against Gorbachev’s
naive reasoning. At that moment confidence in the Western
partners was shattered and anti-American feelings were
nurtured. It is difficult for Russia to trust Americans. That
lack of trust was handed over from Gorbachev to Jeltsin and
finally to Putin. I think that Germany and France, together
with the BENELUX, should improve our contact again to
improve our relationship and build trust.
The new French President Macron has created the basis for
a renewed relationship with President Putin. Our Belgian
Prime Minister, Charles Michel, has been in the Kremlin
recently (March 2018) and was treated with great respect.
These are positive signs but it should result in an outcome
soon.
Barbara Dietrich

Wallpaper, detail, watercolor
© Lieve Van Stappen
21

HERMAN VAN ROMPUY
PRESIDENT EMERITUS
OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL
ON PRESENT EUROPEAN AND
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
AND ON DEALING WITH
POPULISM IN EUROPE
The World is changing. In which direction are we
evolving and what do you think is the right way
forward?
22
First of all, before I answer your questions, we have to
make an analysis of the world as it is now, before we can
speak about where we are heading for. If there are two
words that characterize the current period, these words
are uncertainty and anxiety. And not only in Western
Europe: you have the same feelings all over the world. This
feeling is much more present now than it was one year
and a half ago, because the continuous discourse of the
American President contributed heavily to this renewed
and accentuated feelings of uncertainty and anxiety. But it
already existed before. What are the main reasons for this
uncertainty?
The first and most actual reason, are the events that are
happening around trade and the so-called trade war.
Without going into detail, the measures that are taken
now do not have a great impact on international trade.
Only 1.5% of GDP for the upcoming ten years. You have
to relate this number to the 10% growth the economy will
have in the upcoming ten years. It is not marginal but you
really have to relativize. There is an impact on investment
because investment depends on a climate of trust: certainty
or uncertainty. Today uncertainty rules.
Most people are worried and concerned. Some are
anticipating a worsening of trade measures. But until
now, the harm done is not that big. In the thirties when
there was also a trade war, exports decreased with almost
60% in just a few years’ time. Now the pace of growth is
slowing down, but this doesn’t mean we experience an
overall decrease of world trade, but it affects the feeling of
uncertainty.
A second point that creates uncertainty is the migration
crisis. Migration is part of globalization. I will share with
you some perspectives. The absolute number of migration
coming via Turkey, via Libya and from the Mediterranean
as a whole to Europe, is one quarter of what it was two
years ago. So the fear of a massive inflow of migrants is
not followed by the statistical figures. We created ‘Fortress
Europe’ whether you like it or not. Europe is protecting
its borders much more effectively than a few years ago,
apart from the humanitarian side of all these measures we
took. But in perception migration is considered by many
of our citizens all over Europe as the main topic. It is also
high on the political agenda in every member country
and considered a threat to our civilization, our culture,
our social security, our jobs… Rightly or wrongly. But this
sustains a huge factor of uncertainty. The answer that
European countries give to it, is precisely protecting much
more effectively the external borders. Same situation in
the United States, where its main symbol is the wall built
between the United States and Mexico, not just built by
President Trump, but also by his predecessors. Migration
is all over the Western World, in the European Union
and the United States, a major topic. Uncertainty. Again
the answer is what we called a few years ago ‘Fortress
Europe’.

Herman Van Rompuy
A third factor of uncertainty is populism. We have to
look at this phenomenon in a very lucid way, seeing all
the aspects. Populism is changing the political landscape,
is creating huge tensions in society: what we call
polarization, going even to racism and installing enemy
thinking. Populism is creating deep cleaves in our society.
But is it a danger for Europe? Yes and no. In Italy, after
one week with the new government, the Italians said: ‘We
will not leave the European Union, we will not leave the
Eurozone.’ Madame Le Pen, after her major defeat in the
French elections, said: ‘We can realize our program within
the European Union.’ When you look at the governmental
agreement in Austria, the European chapter is still quite
a traditional European chapter, which doesn’t mean it is
strongly pro-European. But it is mainstream European
and not creating worries on the European Project. After
Brexit there is a change in populism. While the public
opinion is more in favor of EU membership than before
Brexit. People don’t want to add instability to an already
unstable world. The support for EU membership increased
dramatically after Brexit. And even so populists want to
remain popular. So they weigh all this, that is why they are
not challenging the European Project as such and the Euro
Area in particular.
Does that mean that populism is no danger? No. Because
governing such a divided society is much more difficult
than when we keep consensus around key values in our
society. We have to keep that in mind. There is one
particular aspect that is not often emphasized: populism
is on the right side of the political spectrum as far as
migration, identity and culture is concerned (what we
called social-cultural factors), but is on the left on socialeconomic
matters. Because a populist party doesn’t
want to become unpopular in cutting social benefits or
decreasing wages or pensions. In general they are against
austerity, against fiscal consolidation. At the end, they
make our economies less competitive on the global scale.
Looking at populism from different angels remains a
reflection of uncertainty and anxiety and is a worry
for other parties and countries because it is creating
political volatility and political instability and makes the
European Union and member states much more difficult
to manage.
23

24
Another threat for the upcoming years is the high level
of private and public debt. I often say that a financial
crisis is bound to happen. We don’t know when and we
don’t know how. But the overall level of debt of 225%,
public and private debt speaking in global terms, is so
high that the situation is threatening, not tomorrow and
not the day after tomorrow but in medium or long term
perspective. Wolfgang Schäuble, when he left his office
as Minister of Finance in Germany, mentioned this as
his main concern for the upcoming decades. We know
the consequences of a financial crisis in the aftermath of
the 2008 crisis. Maybe it will not even be in my lifetime,
but we have to be very careful and vigilant. Because the
public and private debt level is not only high but it has
increased since 2008 with 12% of GDP, especially in
China and the United States. In Europe, we conducted
the policy of austerity and control in many countries
in comparison with China and the US. In China, some
action has been taken but it is a factor of uncertainty.
Geopolitical rivalry also plays a role. Not between Russia
and the United States. With all respect to the great
country that Russia is, but today they represent 3% of
the world economy, the United States 15%, and China
even more, when we make the comparison in what we
technically call ‘Purchasing Power Parity’. When you
make a comparison between the Russian and the Chinese
economy, it is almost a factor from one to six. When
I speak about geopolitical rivalry, economically and
politically speaking, it is between the USA and China.
But the question is: is there really that kind of rivalry?
Because our Chinese Friend tends to underestimate the
domestic factors that are inspiring or motivating the
policies of President Trump. President Trump’s first
concern is domestic, his first concern is to show to his
core voters that he is defending the United States in the
world. That is why he is taking action against China, and
also against the European Union.
Unfortunately, the United States have not many friends
anymore in the world making life even difficult to their
closest allies: Canada, Japan and the European Union.
Even if we consider the main motivation of the United
States, of its new administration, related to domestic
goals, it still is perceived as a rivalry between two main
players. And in the Western World, the feeling is created
that in this rivalry not only the United States but the
Western World are on the losing side. The balance of
power is shifting, more in the direction of Asia than in
the direction of the Atlantic. This leads in ‘Good Old
Europe’ to questioning, ‘Where are we heading for?’,
‘What is our future?’ and ‘What is the place of the
European Union in all this?’
One of the answers to all these issues, trade, migration,
geopolitics, is not less Europe but even more European
cooperation and integration. And that is one of the
paradoxes: at the moment when the European Project is
challenged, when so-called Eurosceptical or Euronegative
parties are on the rise, at that very moment a clear
analysis of the situation shows that to give the right
answer to all those challenges — and I ‘forgot’ in a way
to speak about cyber-security, terrorism, etc. — you can’t
solve those problems anymore on the national level.
When we lived through the trade war between the United
States and the European Union, it was not Macron or
Merkel who concluded an agreement with the United
States, it was the European Commission. This is one of
the great evolutions: the European Institutions showed
their relevance.
I was recently in China during the European Union-China
Summit, and the conclusions were really surprising:
on the Chinese side they promised to reinstall a level
playing field for our traders and for our investors because
there were problems and discriminations. We also made
gestures, so the conclusions were rightly balanced. But
they dealt with the problem together with the European
leaders, the President of the European Council and the
President of the European Commission. China also
notices how important the EU Institutions are in such
a period of uncertainty. So one of the answers is more
European integration and cooperation.
We have recent examples, simply to emphasize and
to underline what I just said. Even the new Italian
government is asking for more banking union, and asking
for more solidarity in the migration issues. Viktor Orban
was meeting Salvini, but they have on migration totally
different opinions. They agree on protecting the external
borders, but everybody is agreeing on this. We don’t
need Orban or Salvini to agree on this. But the divisive
issue between Italy and Hungary is solidarity. The Italian
populists are asking for more Europe. And I am not
telling this for the sake of the argument because it is
based on facts and on declarations.

On defence for instance, we are making huge progress.
After the declarations of President Trump, after the
annexation of the Crimea, confronted with the unstable
situation in the Middle East, European countries
concluded: ‘We have to do more to defend ourselves.’ And
Merkel said: ‘We have to take our fate into our own hands.’
And that is why we set up this ‘Permanent Structured
Cooperation’, what we call ‘PESCO’. 25 countries
are participating. We thought only a few of them would
participate and on a number of very concrete projects. We
are far from a European army but it is about convergence
in many military domains: on purchases of devices, on the
repartition of the roles between armies, on research and
development with aid of the European Commission…
The complex situation is requesting more European
cooperation in the midst of rising Euroscepticism. A
paradox. My advice is not to start a crusade for more
Europe, because then you will have all kinds of reactions.
But we should move on to work on a very concrete basis of
different topics, going in one direction: more cooperation
and integration.
I believe as well that this is what we need. We have
to look to each other, to have empathy with each
other and see what we can do together and how we
can help each other. Here in Brussels, Belgium and
Europe, we are strong. Europe stands for Peace.
We should be proud that we have Europe and we
must be pro-European. And we can be patriotic but
not too much: we must find the right balance.
In the same line of reasoning, we have to show the
European citizens that Europe is not only needed but
that Europe can also protect better against threats, real
threats or perceived threats: unemployment, unstable
jobs, mass illegal migration, terrorism, climate change,
all kinds of dumping and even threats on our borders —
especially important for Central and Eastern European
countries. We have to protect people better. Of course
also cooperation of member states is needed for this, but
without Europe it will not work, without more European
cooperation and in some domains more European
integration it will not work.
Herman Van Rompuy
25

The scale of problems is becoming too global and too
international. But then we have to perform, we have to
deliver. People need to feel that they are much better
protected by Europe. We are doing a lot, in all those
domains. I can give you for each domain a kind of
summary of all that we did. But the problem is that it is
at this stage not convincing enough. Because the crises
of the Eurozone and the refugees were so traumatic for
many people. You could have lost all your savings in the
banking crisis and in the Eurozone crisis. Imagine that
there was an implosion of the banking system.
26
Imagine that the Euro would have collapsed. This was
at certain moments a real threat, not only dramatic but
also traumatic. The same occurred with the refugee
crisis: at a certain moment we had the perspective that
not only 1.5 million people could come to Europe, but
several millions. And people were showing solidarity in
the beginning of the refugee crisis but there are limits
to our solidarity. And the perspective that millions
would come was too much for almost all people. So we
showed our generosity and solidarity but at a certain
moment, we considered that there are limits to that kind
of feeling. This created in both the Eurozone crisis and
refugee crisis, such traumas in public opinion that even
if we show today results in all the domains I mentioned,
these are considered not enough and not sufficiently
convincing. It is up to us politicians to work very hard
to convince people even more, because the argument of
peace is a major argument for our generation but it is not
enough for the younger generation.
I want to come back to Great Britain. In United Kingdom
the younger generation voted overwhelmingly in favour
of ‘Remain’. The youth should have gone to the ballot
boxes. Too many stayed at home. The older generation in
England — not in Wales, not in Scotland, not in Northern
Ireland and not in London — voted against membership of
the European Union. And precisely that older generation
has known the war. And the young generation that didn’t
know the war, voted in favour.
So our younger generation — independent from the
argument of war and peace — are pro-European: and
that is for me, in all the problems we have, an element
of hope. Peace lost its attraction on the continent for
younger people as an argument for Europe. But they see
that their colleagues in Britain, British youngsters, found
other reasons to believe in the European cause.
Barbara Dietrich and Herman Van Rompuy
They lost the referendum for now, with a very small
margin: 48% against 52%. And if there is tomorrow a
new referendum, the final result of a referendum could
be just the opposite. What happened in Brexit is very
sad and disappointing. It is a political amputation of the
European Union. In 2060 the United Kingdom will be
the most populated country in Europe, having the most
inhabitants and leaving Germany and France behind,
especially Germany that will lose a lot of its population.
But younger people want to stay. This is the very first
time that the older generation took away the future of a
younger generation. We were always told that we have
to work for our children and grandchildren. But in this
case the older generation is working against the will and
interests of the younger generation. It is quite surprising
and even astonishing.
Barbara Dietrich and Maarten Vermeir

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27

ASEM
GLOBAL PARTNERS FOR
GLOBAL CHALLENGES
H.E. ZHANG MING
AMBASSADOR OF CHINA
TO THE EUROPEAN UNION
On 18 and 19 October, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang joined
other leaders of ASEM members for the 12 th ASEM Summit
in Brussels. The theme of this summit “Global Partners
for Global Challenges” is highly relevant. In this age of
multiple challenges, China is committed to working with
other countries in Asia and Europe to send a strong signal
of upholding multilateralism and to forge a robust ASEM
partnership.
Asia and Europe are the cradles of Oriental and Western
civilizations. Both have witnessed the splendid episodes of
world history and human progress. More than two thousand
years ago, Asia and Europe were connected by the ancient
Silk Road, which led to mutual learning, exchanges and
interactions. Twenty-two years ago, ASEM was born in the
broader context of globalization. Over time, the mechanism
has grown into an important platform for Asia and Europe
to engage with each other for greater mutual understanding
and cooperation.
Asia and Europe need to build stronger consensus. Since
its inception, ASEM has weathered through some major
challenges, like the 9/11 attacks and the global financial
crisis, testifying to its great resilience and the unwavering
commitment to cooperation. As anti-globalization and
protectionist sentiments threaten to come back, our world
is mired in a greater sense of instability and uncertainty. It
is more important than ever for ASEM members to come
together, think in long terms, and take coordinated actions
to resist unilateralism and uphold multilateralism.
28
ASEM stands for the spirit of multilateralism and openness,
and the commitment to seek dialogue and partnership
rather than confrontation and alliance. For years, ASEM
members have endeavored to advance trade and investment
liberalization and facilitation, promote sustainable
development, build an open world economy, and bring
forward global governance reform. Despite great cultural
differences, ASEM members have drawn strength from
such diversity and bring their citizens closer to each other
through dialogue and communication. ASEM’s success
sheds light on a simple yet powerful message: openness leads
to progress, and cooperation benefits all. Protectionism leads
nowhere, and zero-sum game dooms to fail.
H.E. Zhang Ming Ambassador of China to the European Union and
Barbara Dietrich

Asia and Europe need to unleash greater potential. Many
Asian and European countries have increased input in
connectivity and made good progress. China has put
forward the Belt and Road Initiative, and the EU has
released a strategy for connecting Europe and Asia.
To increase Eurasian connectivity, apart from bilateral
partnerships, ASEM as a multilateral mechanism has a
crucial role to play as well. We need to strive for early
harvests in such priority areas as trade and investment
facilitation, sustainable development, digital economy, and
people-to-people exchanges. We could also explore more
opportunities in such future-oriented areas as clean energy,
ecological protection, smart technology and urbanization.
respect for such differences. For this to happen, cultural
exchanges and communication are critically important.
Thanks to the widespread use of information technology,
people-to-people exchanges could be much more diverse,
engaging and convenient than before. We must act together
to ensure that our cooperation is always of the people, by
the people and for the people.
At the upcoming summit, China stands ready to join
hands with other ASEM members to add to the sense of
togetherness and the spirit of partnership, and make a
positive contribution to more substantial cooperations
between Asia and Europe.
Asia and Europe need to harness the strength of people.
The 53 ASEM members vary from one another due to
different historical and national conditions. Yet, the longterm
development of ASEM would not be possible without
(The author is Ambassador Extraordinary and
Plenipotentiary and Head of Mission of the People’s
Republic of China to the European Union.)
ASEM
GLOBAL PARTNERS FOR GLOBAL CHALLENGES
29

H.E. ELISABETH KORNFEIND
AMBASSADOR OF AUSTRIA
TO THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM
AND TO NATO
ON DIPLOMATIC ACTIVITIES DURING
THE AUSTRIAN PRESIDENCY OF
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION.
30
I have taken up my duties as Austrian Ambassador for
the Kingdom of Belgium and NATO in January this year.
The second half of 2018 was already marked as the time
for Austria’s EU-council presidency. Thus it was clear that
Europe and the European Union will play a considerable
part of my duties, although the council work itself will be
dealt by the Permanent Representation and its officials from
all parts of the Austrian administration.
For Austria, this presidency will be the third one, after 1998
and 2006, and it is certainly not comparable to the previous
presidencies. Not only has the institutional framework
changed after the Treaty of Lisbon, with a president of the
European Council and High Representative for Foreign
and Security Policy, but also because Europe finds itself in
a very challenging international environment. Within the
European Union, we see serious discussions among member
states. The migration crisis and, before that, the financial
and economic crisis, have left their marks, and we have
to deal — for the first time in the history of the European
integration process — with a member state that wants to
leave the EU.
As a medium sized EU-member state, we have to raise all
forces within the administration to accomplish our tasks.
So far, Austria chaired more than 500 preparatory meetings
in Brussels, Luxemburg and Strasbourg and has already
hosted roughly half of all the meetings planned in Austria.
In total, there will be more than 200 meetings in Austria.
In Salzburg the Heads of States and Governments met
on 18/19 September, more than ten informal Meetings of
Ministers have already taken place or will be due soon.
From the start it was clear that we will have certainly
a much more challenging semester than during our
previous presidencies. As we are faced with a demanding
environment for the Council Presidency with Brexit, the
start of the negotiations for the next Multiannual Financial
Framework, which entails the future focus and priorities
of the EU, geo-political developments and unfortunately
also internal discussions — it was clear that we have to
communicate to our citizens that the EU also delivers on its
promises. The motto of the Austrian presidency, “A Europe
that protects”, relates to all three priorities.
Security and the fight against illegal migration, securing
prosperity and competitiveness through digitalization, and
stability in the European neighbourhood, with a clear EU
perspective for the countries of South Eastern Europe.
At the same time it is tantamount to secure the unity of
the EU. The EU-council presidency puts Austria in the
spotlight, both here in Brussels and in the rest of Europe. At
the same time, citizens in Austria become more aware of the
EU, be it through the topics that Austria has to deal with
as presidency, or through the many high level meetings that
Austria hosts in different parts of the country.
This half year also provides an occasion to put Austria in
the spotlight here in Brussels. Known for its cultural life
and its cultural events, Austria will be represented by very
interesting and high profile cultural events here in Brussels.
To name just a few: a big exhibition on the influence of
the painter Gustav Klimt on contemporary artists all over
Europe, titled “Beyond Klimt”, will be shown at the Bozar
until the end of January 2019. Renowned orchestras,
notably the Wiener Philharmoniker, but also our leading
orchestra for contemporary music, the Klangforum, as well
as the Wiener Symphoniker give concerts, complemented by
a variety of cultural events in Brussels, covering literature,

Barbara Dietrich and H.E. Elisabeth Kornfeind
theatre, visual arts and dance. The Austrian Cultural Forum
Brussels has come up with an interesting program, which
we hope will create interest and inspiration. It helps that EU
institutions have declared 2018 as the Year of the European
Cultural Heritage. There could be no better motto for us to
show that a political idea and vision needs the emotional
conviction that culture, and cultural exchange can give.
The focus of Austrian government policy lies on European
cooperation, in foreign policy but also in advancing the
common market. Located in the center of the continent,
Austria has a long tradition as a bridge builder between
East and West — a tradition we are very much aware of until
today. Austria has a strong regional structure and — the
nine provinces, the “Bundesländer”, play an active role in
European affairs and contribute to a better understanding of
the EU on a regional and local level. In this respect, there
are some parallels with Belgium, and its strong regions,
cities and communities.
Being ambassador to Belgium is a very satisfying job,
as there are so many positive ties which can be further
developed. Not only do we share a common history, for
example under Empress Maria Theresia, whose 300 th
birthday was celebrated in Austria last year, and who has
founded important institutions especially in education,
science, arts and culture . The structure of our economies
is comparable — relying on small and medium-sized
enterprises — and we have strong economic ties. The trade
and services volume has reached about 5,6 billion €, and
more than 570,000 Belgians visited Austria last year.
There is a vibrant cultural exchange as well. Last year,
a large exhibition in Vienna was dedicated to Peter Paul
Rubens, and. on Oct 1st, a major exhibition on Peter
Breughel the Elder, on the occasion of his 450 th anniversary
of his death, will be opened at the Kunsthistorisches
Museum (Museum of Fine Arts) by His Majesty King
Philippe and Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen.
Both exhibitions underline the role of these outstanding
painters as truly European artists, and the European
cultural heritage.
Let me conclude by expressing my hope that the Austrian
presidency can contribute that the European Union
will emerge stronger and well prepared for the current
challenges. On the bilateral level, increased cooperation
between Austria and Belgium will benefit the people of
our countries, and contribute to stability and prosperity in
Europe.
Interview with Barbara Dietrich, CEO Diplomatic World
31

H.E. E. RODNEY M. PERERA
AMBASSADOR
OF SRI LANKA
Sri Lanka’s strategic location is its key asset.
On the South Western coast, it is located in very
close proximity to the world’s busiest sea-lane in
the Indian Ocean connecting maritime traffic from
Europe, Africa and Asia.
On the Northern coast, it is only a dozen kilometers
away from the vast Indian subcontinent. At its Southern
extremity, there is no landmass in a straight line all the
way up to the South Pole. Thus from ancient times to the
present day, Sri Lanka has been the meeting point and
entreport between East West trade.
Today with the economic rise of China, India and East
Asia, Sri Lanka is a direct beneficiary in multiple ways.
Our close and friendly ties with all our neighbours are a
great fillip. It has already become a transshipment hub with
two major ports. Its tourism industry is benefitting from
the rising economic prosperity of the people of Asia. With
a highly educated population, the country is fast becoming
a knowledge hub and an attractive place for BPO and
financial services. We now have two international airports,
which are facilitating the country to become an important
regional transit hub.
stable and functioning democracy with historical ties to
many European countries, we share common ideals and
work together at the international level to promote these
values. We have a very fruitful cooperation with the EU
on issues like migration, where many of our people, who
sought refuge here decades ago, are now returning to Sri
Lanka in significant numbers. Europe remains a popular
destination for many of our students for higher education
and so we continue to promote academic exchanges between
our universities. As Sri Lanka also has a unique and diverse
culture, our music, dance and cuisine are actively promoted
to strengthen the synergies.
Renewable energy is on the worldwide priority
list related to the sustainability of our globe and
climate change. How do you see the evolution in
Sri Lanka’s strategy and challenges related to this
situation?
As Ambassador of Sri Lanka, what are
the main focus points for you today in
Brussels-Bilateral agreements, Economic
Diplomacy, Cultural Diplomacy and Education?
32
The European Union is Sri Lanka’s largest trading partner.
The EU GSP+ facility has given us duty free access for
over 7000 products to the EU market and our exports to
the EU are significantly increasing. At the same time, it is
diversifying. My focus continues to be to promote trade
and investment as well as tourism. Sri Lanka’s significant
peace and stability as a tourist and investor friendly
destination has helped in this process. At the political
level our endeavour has been to broaden and intensify our
dialogue with the European Union on many issues. As a
Juan Torrents President FEMOZA The World Free & Special Economic
Zones Federation, H.E. E. Rodney M. Perera Ambassador of Sri Lanka,
Barbara Dietrich CEO Diplomatic World, Monique De Decker-Deprez
Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka

Aerial view of Colombo, Sri Lanka modern buildings with coastal promenade area.
© Shutterstock
Whilst our main source of power generation is hydro
powder, coal and petroleum are the two main commercial
energy supply sub-sectors in Sri Lanka. Biomass is also
emerging as significant form of commercial energy.
The government continues to increase the capacity of
renewable energy generation in the country, with a view
to enhancing sustainability in the energy sector. The
construction of Uma Oya, Moragahakanda and Broadlands
hydropower plants are in progress adding more power to the
national grid by 2019.
Small-scale hydropower, biomass including dendro power,
biogas and waste, solar and wind power are replacing
dependency of fossil fuel for power generation. In addition,
other NRE resources such as wave energy and ocean
thermal energy are also being explored. The Ministry
of Power and Renewable Energy has launched a new
community based power generation project titled 'Soorya
BalaSangramaya' (Battle for Solar Energy) in collaboration
with Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA),
Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and Lanka Electricity
Company (Private) Limited (LECO) to promote the
setting up of small solar power plants on the rooftops
of households, religious places, hotels, commercial
establishments and industries. It is expected to add 200 MW
of solar electricity to the national grid by 2020 and 1000
MW by 2025 through this intervention. Under this program,
the consumers will have options to generate and use
electricity in their premises. In case of electricity in excess
of their requirements, they can sell that to the national
grid or bank it for later use. According to the electricity
usage the customer can select a preferred option from the
following three schemes: Net Metering, Net Accounting and
Micro Solar Power Producer.
‘RiviBalaSavi’ loan scheme was introduced in 2017 to
provide concessionary loans to households through the
banking sector to setup rooftop solar power PV panels.
A project has been initiated to convert public sector
buildings to solar rooftop power producers. Under this
project, 10KW and 20KW solar rooftop systems were
provided free for 13 schools, 77 hospitals and four
government institutions.
‘RiviAruna’ project commenced in 2017 to convert religious
premises to rooftop solar power projects by providing solar
panels free to selected religious places. Accordingly, 135
solar systems have been installed in religious places.
33

e shared by us all. In what way will your country
take part in this initiative and what are the main
opportunities for Sri Lanka?
Elephant in Sigiriya lion rock fortress, Sri Lanka.
© Shutterstock
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is rooted in
the ancient Silk Road. It focuses on the Asian,
Arabian and European continents, but is also
open to all other countries. All countries, from
Asia, Arabia, Europe, or the Americas, can be
international cooperation partners of the Belt and
Road Initiative. The pursuit of this initiative is
based on extensive consultation and its benefits will
Sri Lanka is a major player in the BRI as it was a major
component of the ancient Silk Road. BRI offers a ‘winwin”
and sustainable development opportunity for us. The
Chinese-built Hambantota Port, which is at mid-point in
the shipping route from Asia to Europe is one of the major
BRI initiatives. The Government and the Sri Lanka Ports
Authority entered into a concession agreement to further
develop the Hambantota port with the aim of developing
the country as a maritime hub. Given the fiscal constraints,
the government needs to further encourage private sector
participation in economic infrastructure development,
especially for the efficient operation of transportation,
telecommunication and port services, while ensuring the
quality of such infrastructure and healthy competition
among private sector participants. The Colombo Financial
City is another BRI initiative, which is under construction
just outside the Port of Colombo. It will become a major
hub for financial services, investment and also serve as a
conference and business meeting venue.
34
Nine Arches Bridge from above, Sri Lanka
© Shutterstock

Silhouettes of the traditional fishermen at the sunset near Galle in Sri Lanka.
© Shutterstock
We are similarly developing our airports and highways to
increase connectivity that will enhance trade economic
development of all regions of the country.
On a parallel track, we are negotiating Free Trade
Agreements with other countries. A FTA with Singapore
was concluded earlier this year and several others are under
negotiation.
business interactions and regular travel between their
home country and adopted country. I believe that common
ground has to be rooted in shared values. This is the only
way trust can be built for a healthy relationship. Already
many Europeans have demonstrated a significant interest in
Buddhism as a way of life that is compatible with European
culture. These are significant strengths that can be built
upon and where the Diaspora can enrich European societies.
We see the BRI initiative as a significant opportunity for
Sri Lanka’s economic development.
The diversity in Europe today, defined by a
continuous Diaspora for millennia, is dying to find
a common cultural ground for the European Union.
With everything mentioned above, could you create
and propose a cultural framework that nurtures this
longing for connection in between Europe and
Sri Lanka?
If you have other topics (tourism) that you would
like to address to our readers, do not hesitate to
elaborate these.
Sri Lanka is a popular tourist destination for European
tourists because of the diversity of Sri Lanka’s multitude of
attractions: from the best beaches to the cool mountains,
the historical cities with eight UNESCO World Heritage
Sites, excellent safari parks and rainforests with the high
diversity of fauna and flora.
We definitely want our Diaspora community to integrate
into their adopted countries whilst continuing to enrich
Europe with Sri Lankan culture. I believe the cultural
framework has already been set in place by the Diaspora
communities themselves through cultural exchanges,
Sri Lanka is particularly popular with European tourists and
each year the arrivals continue to increase with many repeat
visitors.
Barbara Dietrich
35

H.E. ASEIN ISAEV
AMBASSADOR
OF KYRGYZSTAN
Kyrgyz Republic has a rich history in the
Old Silk Roads, but most of that history is
still a secret for Europeans
What is your country doing to disclose these hidden
secrets to the West? Manas Kumbez, Tash-Rabat
caravanserai (IX th century) Burana Tower, Mount
Suleiman, Uzgen architectural complex,
Shah-Fazil mausoleum these are really treasures
to be discovered by the Europeans — how can we
promote these new touristic destinations? Is there
need for more investments in the tourist industry —
what are the opportunities?
Kyrgyzstan indeed has a rich historical past associated with
the Great Silk Road. The customs and culture of the Kyrgyz
people have absorbed the culture of different nations, and
there are also a lot of borrowings in the national language of
the Kyrgyz people.
You are absolutely right that such objects as Tash-Rabat,
Burana Tower, Manas Kumbez, Shakh Fazil Mausoleum
and others are the historical heritage of Kyrgyzstan of those
times and that these treasures were closed to Europeans
for various reasons. Being part of the Soviet Union and
the iron curtain between the countries of the West and the
USSR played big role in it. After the collapse of the Soviet
Union and obtaining independence, Kyrgyzstan started to
make active attempts to open up to the world the hidden
treasures, both historical and natural.
In 2012 Kyrgyzstan adopted the Law, according to which
country unilaterally established visa-free regime for citizens
of 45 countries, including most European countries to come
for a short stay up to two month without getting visa and
simplified visa regime for citizens of 67 countries, which
allows to easily obtain a longer period visa.
In recent years Kyrgyzstan introduced and launched the
“Electronic visa system”, that allowed people from all
over the world, to apply for Kyrgyz visa and get it within 3
business days, without need to find and go to embassy or
consulate, and adopted the provision, according to which
citizens of most countries were exempted from registration
procedures on mutual basis for up to 90 days.
Regarding assistance in promoting tourism and investment,
I want to note that the development of tourism in general
needs a range of activities and the Kyrgyz Republic certainly
needs the development of tourism management and tourism
infrastructure. Kyrgyzstan, having historical cultural values
and a natural landscape that is attractive for tourists, is still
learning how to show and present it. At the same time, the
It is important to say that Kyrgyzstan is primarily interested
in the development of tourism and makes maximum
efforts to promote it by creating comfortable conditions
for tourists, creating a favorable visa environment in the
country for EU citizens, improving infrastructure, and
working to open direct flights between the Kyrgyz Republic
and EU countries.
36
H.E. Asein Isaev Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan with Barbara Dietrich

Aerial view over rooftops and mosque in Osh city, Kyrgyzstan
© Shutterstock
tourism sector in the Kyrgyz Republic is a direction with a
high “giveback”, given the rising number of coming tourists.
At the same time, the country has a huge potential, which
is confirmed by the fact that the flow of foreign tourists
is increasing markedly, as in other much more developed
countries that have all the conditions for this.
Kyrgyzstan is constantly working on improving the legal
environment for entrepreneurs involved in the organization
of tourism services and it is also important to state that
great attention is paid to the rule of law.
Currently, a large number of travel companies, including
European ones, operate in the country. For example,
according to official data of the National Statistics
Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic, the Netherlands is the
leader in Foreign Direct Investments in the field of tourism,
whose share in 2017 was more than 60%.
An important international event in popularizing the culture
and history of Kyrgyzstan are the World Nomad Games.
This year, the Nomad Games were held for the third time,
having received great fame in the world. The WNG allowed
to reach a wider public from the EU, which now plans to
visit Kyrgyzstan in the future and learn more about its
history and attractions.
In addition, the Kyrgyz Republic annually participates in
various fairs and exhibitions dedicated to tourism. There is
an extensive advertising campaign through the media, the
work of diplomatic missions and consular offices.
Kyrgyz Republic occupied a very strategic
geographical position on the ancient trade routes,
and was embracing the cultural achievements of
East and West. Your country was the bridge that
connected the East and the West. Three branches of
the ancient caravan — 7000 km — route had passed
through the territory of Kyrgyzstan, namely, the
Pamir-Alai, south and north, which runs through
Tien-Shan and Pamir high mountain passes. Does
your country now also plays a new role in the new
Silk Roads that China is promoting through its One
Belt One Road policy? What are the main projects
to give your country a regional role — leaving behind
its isolation as a landlocked country? Can you
document your country’s new Silk Road plans.
Yes, the current territory of Kyrgyzstan served as the main
bridge on the giant trade route connecting the East and
West. Located on the Great Silk Road, Kyrgyzstan was the
crossroad of trade and cultural traditions between China,
37

38
Iran, India, the Arabian Sea and the Western world.
I have to say that the Great Silk Road never stopped
to function as the connection bridge between East and
West, because trading always remained between Western
and Eastern countries and some routes are still used in
Kyrgyzstan as highways.
As before, Kyrgyzstan maintains trade and economic
relations with neighboring countries through its territorial
location. Kyrgyzstan occupies an advantageous geographical
position. Our country is a part of the Great Silk Road, and
in a new format it is a road to economic prosperity for all
who take part in its development.
There are projects such as TRACECA that are aimed at
strengthening economic relations, trade and transport
communication in the regions of the Black Sea basin, South
Caucasus and Central Asia, which is also considered as the
modern Great Silk Road.
The BRI project, initiated by China, is certainly of great
interest, since China opens up direct trade with the EU
countries. China considers Kyrgyzstan as its important
strategic partner and, with the entry of the Kyrgyz Republic
to the Eurasian Economic Union in 2015, China has the
opportunity to discover the markets of all the countries
participating in the EAEU. This situation clearly shows a
trend associated with economic integration. The regional
role of our country is to provide territory for the transit
of goods from China to other countries, where the main
interest is territorial. Also the Central Asian region itself has
a huge export potential and currently there are good positive
integrational processes going in the region that will possible
lead to development of production and export to the markets
along the Great Silk Road. I want to say that it is a good
opportunity to strengthen internal ties in the region.
Important projects for Kyrgyzstan have been and are
being implemented. The construction of an alternative
North-South road is underway, over a hundreds of roads
in the capital are being repaired, as many other industrial
and infrastructural projects. With the revival of the Silk
Road, the amount of such objects and construction sites
in Kyrgyzstan will grow. This is a chance not only to raise
our own economy, but to embark on a path of sustainable
development for decades ahead
Your country has still large development potential
in terms of renewable energy — especially
hydropower electricity. How will your government
promote this sector?
Since Kyrgyzstan is a country capable of producing
electricity at lower cost, the hydropower issue is a priority
for the country. The Kyrgyz Republic is committed
to maintaining the ecological environment and thus
hydropower, being one of the most environmentally friendly
and safe ways to produce electricity will remain relevant.
I can provide some official statistical data on the
hydropower potential of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The total hydropower potential of the Kygryz Republic is
142.5 billion kWh and the percentage of the used potential
is only 10%.
Only on the Naryn river can be built 8 cascades of
hydropower stations and the total installed capacity of
prospective cascades is 6450 MW.
As it can be seen from the mass media, the presence of
foreign companies is increasing interested in supplying
equipment, as well as creating conditions for the
construction of hydroelectric power stations.
The state promotes the sector by giving it the priority
status, as well by creating favorable conditions for foreign
investment and the involvment of the world community to
environmental safety issues. Kyrgyzstan is also a regular
participant in various international conferences related to
the safe production of electricity.
What is your governments main statement and
strategy to promote Foreign Direct Investment
(FDI) — what sectors and how can foreign
companies mitigate risks; amongst others political
ones?
Kyrgyzstan is the land of boundless opportunities with
rich natural resources and great potential. Only for 27
years of independence, Kyrgyzstan managed to achieve the
democratization of social and political life, liberalization
of doing business conditions, foreign trade activities,
membership in international organizations and unions.
Kyrgyzstan has provided to the entrepreneurs freedom of
trade, opened up the opportunities for the development of
production and access to international markets, as well as to
its internal market. Furthermore, Kyrgyzstan has advantages
in terms of investment attractiveness on a number of
factors, as implementation of a program of market reforms
and macroeconomic stabilization, it actively works on the
privatization of telecommunications, energy and transport

sectors, full-fledged free trade regime, free money exchange
system and unrestricted movement of capital, liberal
investment regime, where all sectors of economy are open to
investors.
Mining, manufacturing, tourism and processing industry
sectors are more attractive for investments. There are numerous
large mining and processing enterprises operating in the Kyrgyz
Republic. In the meantime, according to international experts,
with a relatively small area and good geological exploration,
mineral resource potential is used poorly.
Thus, under the legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic, foreign
investors enjoy the national treatment applied to individuals
and legal entities of the country. Legislation provides
for a broad scope of rights and guarantees to foreign
investors, including guarantees of export and repatriation
of investment, property, and information out of the Kyrgyz
Republic, guarantees of protection against investment
expropriation and coverage of losses incurred by investors,
guarantees of income use and freedom of monetary
transactions, and others.
Since investments are a major prerequisite for economic
development in the Kyrgyz Republic, investment legislation
of the country is quite liberal.
The Constitution is the basic and paramount law to which
all other laws must conform, including the laws directly
or indirectly regulating investment in the Kyrgyz Republic
such as the “Law on Licensing”, the “Law on Joint-Stock
Companies”, the “Law on Mining”, the “Law on Free
Economic Zones in the Kyrgyz Republic”, the Tax Code,
the Land Code, the Customs Code, the Civil Code, the
“Law on Public-Private Partnership in KR”. Nonetheless,
the principal law governing investment is the “Law on
Investment in Kyrgyz Republic”.
Subject to its legislation, the Kyrgyz Republic provides the
following guarantees to foreign investors:
• national treatment of business activities, equal
investment rights of domestic and foreign investors, no
intervention into the business activities of investors,
protection and restitution of infringed rights of
investors in accordance with the legislation of the
Kyrgyz Republic
• export or repatriation of profit gained on investment,
proceeds of investment activities in the Kyrgyz
Republic, property, and information, out of the
Kyrgyz Republic
• protection against expropriation (nationalization,
requisition, or other equivalent measures, including
Yurts in Kyrgyzstan
© Shutterstock
39

action or omission on the part of authorized
government bodies of the Kyrgyz Republic that has
resulted in seizure of investor’s funds or investor’s
deprivation of the possibility to use the results of
their investment). In exceptional cases involving
public interest, investments may be expropriated with
concurrent state guarantees of appropriate coverage of
damage incurred by the investor
• the investor’s right to freely use the income derived
from their activities in the Kyrgyz Republic
• the freedom to invest in any form into objects and
activities not prohibited by the legislation of the Kyrgyz
Republic, including the activities subject to licensing
• freedom of monetary transactions (free conversion of
currency, unbound and unrestricted money transfers;
should provisions restricting money transfers in foreign
currency be introduced into the legislation of the
Kyrgyz Republic, these provisions will not apply to
foreign investors, with the exception of cases where
investors engage in illegitimate activities (such as money
laundering)
• free access to open-source information
• the right to: establish legal entities of any organizational
and legal form provided by the legislation of the Kyrgyz
Republic; open branches and representative offices
within the territory of the Kyrgyz Republic; select any
organizational and managerial structure for the business
entities, unless a different structure is explicitly required
by law for the given organizational and legal form of a
business entity; acquire property (with the exception
of land plots), shares, other securities, including
governmental securities; participate in privatization of
state property, establish associations and other unions; hire
local and foreign employees subject to legislation of the
Kyrgyz Republic; and engage in other investment activities
not prohibited by legislation in the Kyrgyz Republic
• recognition by public authorities and officials of the
Kyrgyz Republic of all intellectual property rights of
foreign investors
• in the event of amendments to the Law of the KR
on Investments, or the tax legislation of the Kyrgyz
Republic or the nontax payments legislation, the
investor and the investee who meet the statutory
requirements have the right, during 10 years from the
date of signing the stabilization agreement, to choose
such conditions as may be most favorable to them for
paying taxes including value added tax but excluding
other indirect taxes, and nontax payments (except fees
and charges for public services) in the manner provided
by the laws of the Kyrgyz Republic. The procedure and
conditions for applying stabilization regime to tax and
nontax legal relationships are established by the laws of
the Kyrgyz Republic
• other guarantees specifically provided in bilateral and
multilateral international treaties on the promotion and
protection of investment, to which the Kyrgyz Republic
is a party.
The World Bank states that the Kyrgyz Republic
will need to diversify its economy. However only
7 percent of the land area is arable, the rest
consisting of glaciers, mountains and pastureland
or steppe that support livestock grazing. Further
the country’s natural resources — comprising
minerals, mainly gold, and water for hydropower
generation — are also limited. What sectors are
priority sectors for your government?
Yes, to realize the full growth potential the economic
activities of the country need to be diversified. But I have
to point that Kyrgyzstan’s vast natural resource reserves
are used poorly at the moment. The hydropower potential
of the country is used only for 10%, and less than 5% of
significant potential for many types of natural minerals is
being developed currently. So there is a good perspective in
this direction for many years ahead.
40
Musicians play local traditional instruments, in Issyk Kul, Kyrgyzstan.
© Shutterstock
But as I said, the economic activities have to be diversified
and currently along with tourism, the priority sectors in the
economy are the agriculture, mining and light industry, the
service sector, as well electric power industry. Kyrgyzstan
has a huge potential in the sector of transport and
infrastructure, as the Kyrgyz Republic is striving to attain

Golden eagle trainer holds his eagle during eagle hunter games in Issuk Kul Lake, Kyrgyzstan
© Shutterstock
the status of an international transport hub. It is important
to note that all sectors of the economy of the Kyrgyz
Republic have potential and are open for investments.
Yes, that is true that most of the country consists of mountains,
glaciers and pastureland. But in the modern changing world,
where present advances in all sectors of economy give vast
opportunities, our country has needed resources and potential
for sustainable development. Kyrgyzstan is working on building
an open and transparent state, raising life standard of citizens,
as well as improving the business environment in the country
through digital transformation. The ambitious project called
“Taza Koom” (Pure community) is aimed at promoting its
digital economy as a new engine of growth — ranging from
digitizing the delivery of public services to broadening
connectivity to promoting digital entrepreneurship.
The location advantages, which include low labour and
electricity costs, abundant hydropower resources, good
weather conditions for agriculture, attractive landscapes
for tourism and overall competitive taxation and trade
preferences and of course the human resources are
preconditions for vast opportunities for foreign investments
and sustainable economic growth.
More than 10 percent of the Kyrgyz population are
migrant workers, mostly in Russia. Do you see this
as a sustainable income for your economy and what
is Government policy regarding this?
Yes, that is right that the money transfers of our fellow
citizens who work abroad is a crucial part of the country’s
gross domestic product.
As foreign trade policy is based on market liberalization,
issues related to labor migration are the planned
development of our foreign trade — trade in services. The
role of the government in creating migration policy is
closely tied to the historical and cultural aspects, current
integration processes within the EAEU. The entry of
the Kyrgyz Republic into the EAEU constituted the
institutional base of the current migration policy of the
Kygryz Republic, which is expressed in the cancellation of
the work permits and other related documents. Accordingly,
such favored conditions within the framework of economic
integration have a positive effect on the stability of the state
income from labor migrants.
Barbara Dietrich
41

H.E. LILIAN DARII
AMBASSADOR OF
THE REPUBLIC OF
MOLDOVA
AN INTRODUCTION TO DISCOVER
MOLDOVA'S HISTORY AND ITS TRADITIONS
I was recently accredited as Ambassador to Belgium and
Luxembourg and my aim is to maintain and develop as
much as possible the relations with these countries at all
levels and at the same time — to make Moldova better
known in the area. My country is independent since
1991. With a rich history tracing back to ancient times,
the Republic of Moldova is home to traditions, culture,
diverse, authentic tasty food, natural products, generous and
welcoming people.
On the territory of the Republic of Moldova one can find
a special concentration of historical and archeological
monuments which have a cultural and historical value not
only at the national level, but also in the general context of
human European values. For those never visiting Moldova,
it is a country of colours, with hot summers, cold snowy
winters, colourful springs and flavoured autumns.
of Moldova, one can fully enjoy everything we have to offer.
And you know an important detail? Moldova is amongst the
countries with fastest speed of mobile internet in the world.
The Republic of Moldova has a rich cultural heritage
which may be of great interest to tourists, approximately
140 cultural heritage sites may be included in the tourist
circuit. The earliest visible remains of the built heritage are
Geto-Dacian sites and Roman fortifications. The remains
of medieval fortresses, archaeological complexes such as
Orheiul Vechi, cave monasteries, nobles’ mansions and
peasant houses offer a diversity of visitor attractions.
Chișinău, the capital city, features a good number of
cultural heritage monuments, fine examples of Domestic
architecture from the 19 th and 20 th centuries.
Relatively small, the Republic of Moldova is at the
crossroads of routes that shaped modern Europe, creating
the perfect balance between geoghraphical and cultural
East and West. Home to a population of 3,5 million
people, Moldova is a harmonious place for diverse cultures,
being the area settled by many people throughout history,
resulting in a rich mix of cultural, religious, architectural,
and culinary traditions.
INVITING CULTURE
What is so special about Moldova? It’s undeniable the
people! You will find them genuine, friendly and warm,
especially when going to the countryside.
If you are thinking about safety, Moldova is a safe country
to travel an is an ideal place for tourists who want to
have a short escape from the typical European cities and
42
considering that it doesn’t take long to travel to every corner
H.E. Lilian Darii
© Embassy of Moldova

© Anatolie Poiata
WINE MAKING WITH PASSION
Did you know that Moldova has two of the biggest wineries
in the world? The cellars of the "Milestii Mici" Winery were
registered in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest
wine collection in the world, with a collection of 1.5 million
bottles. The bottles are stored in 55 km of underground
galleries. The first bottle was stored in 1968, and new vintages
are added each year.
The Wine cellars of "Cricova" Wine Company are known
worldwide due to its huge labyrinths, exceeding 120 km in
length.
Over the centuries Moldova has gained rich traditions of
growing grapes and wine production. If you look on the
map, Moldova is shaped as a bunch of grapes situated
between Ukraine and Romania, in the Black Sea basin,
where the vine originates.
The country has a fragmented relief, with low hills, sunny
plateaus and plains, crossed by a lot of streams which flow
into the two big rivers, Prut and Dniester. Moldova has
112 thousand hectares of vineyard and 3 historical wine
regions: Valul lui Traian, Stefan Voda and Codru. There are
142 wineries in the Republic of Moldova, of which 23 have
facilities to receive visitors. Here tourists can experience and
learn about the complex production processes. It is amazing
to enter in those underground cellars looking actually like
towns (!), with a length of more than 100 km with wine
storage facilities, wine processing factories, production
processes of sparkling wine, red, white, rose wines, divin,
heres, etc. To celebrate Moldova's rich winemaking
traditions, which date back to the 15 th century, each year,
© Anatolie Poiata
during the first weekend in October at the end of the grape
43

Wine Festival
© Anatolie Poiata
44
harvest, in the capital of Moldova, Chisinau, takes place the
wine festival, officially named "National Wine Day".
CULTURE AND ART — THE UNKNOWN JEWELS.
UNESCO INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF
HUMANITY
The Republic of Moldova has 87 museums with rich
collections of art. The folklore has a strong basis of
Dacian-Latin origin and its customs are specifically defined
by means of music and dance, oral poetry and prose,
mythology, rites, popular theatre. There are over 880 folk
music groups in the Republic of Moldova, 22 theatres.
Carpets are considered works of art in Moldova,
representing an expression of national creativity and
identity. The carpet weaving technique from Romania
and Moldova is part of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural
Heritage starting December 1 st , 2016.
I am very proud to say that the tradition of "Mărțișor"
is of particular significance in Moldova. "Mărţişor" is
called the March month, but it is also a symbolic object
representing two threads of wool — one white and the
other red, twisted together, tied as a talisman to the neck,
hands or to the coat of people. "Mărţişor" is being made
on the eve of the feast, and on the 1 st of March they are
offered as a gift, with wishes of health and happiness.
The "Mărţişor" feast is an example of cultural vivacity of
a long-standing tradition. The symbol of the "Mărţişor"
is made every spring, worn until the first messengers of
spring — the flowering trees or the first storks. "Mărţişor"
symbol is a part of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage
of humanity.
DANCE A HORA IN MOLDOVA
Moldovans widely celebrate traditional music and dance.
There are hundreds of songs following the tempo of
traditional dances such as "hora" and "sîrba". Dances
are typically performed in a circle with the dancers
holding hands or linking arms while dancing in a counter
clockwise direction.
Renowned National Academic Ensemble of Folk Dance
"Joc" is the oldest folk dance ensemble of Moldova,
created in Chișinău in August 1945.

© Anatolie Poiata
Over the years, the ensemble of dances has participated
in more than seven thousand concerts and international
festivals, being awarded several medals and diplomas,
among them the 1 st place at the 4 th World Festival of
Youth and Students of 1953.
TOWARDS A FUTURE IN THE EUROPEAN FAMILY
and cultural European space. At the same time, Moldovan
market is opening even more for European partners and
vice versa. In this regard, for us, as a diplomatic mission
abroad it is of utmost significance to built connections
amongst people from Moldova and EU countries as well
as to make Moldovan products known on the European
market.
Aiming at the membership of the EU and identifiying itself
with European values, the Republic of Moldova is on a way
of gradualy and surely advancing on a path of ambitious
reforms in line with its national objective of European
integration.
To this end, we have a very important roadmap in the form
of the provisions set out in the Association Agreement
with the EU (signed in 2014). This important cooperation
mechanism with the EU provides the Republic of Moldova
with needed instruments on the path of advancing with
ambitious set of reforms aimed at transformation and
modernization of the country.
It is important to note that due to successful armonization
of legislation and as a result of the implemented reforms,
the Republic of Moldova gets closer to political, economic
We value the special relation we have established with
EU as a whole and individually EU member states on the
political, social, cultural and economic dimension.
As an indicator of the signifcance of partnership with
the EU, we can mention that in the beginning of the
implementation of the Association agreement, EU become
the most important economic partner of Moldova. 68,5% of
the exports are directed to the EU countries and 51% of the
imports are generated by the EU member states (data for
January-June 2018).
Following a determined path of European integration, the
Government of the Republic of Moldova looks and works
towards a future in the family of the European Union.
Sharing the history and European values, Moldova is aiming
at a future aligned with its European partners and friends.
45

LAND OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES
Home to fertile and rich soil, the Republic of Moldova is
well known for its tasty agricultural products as well as
wine production. Strategic geographical positioning of the
Republic of Moldova, transforms the country into a bridge
between East and West. In the Global Location Trends
Report 2017 Moldova ranks number six in the world in
terms of the number of jobs created in relation to the
population, reaching the newest destination for emerging
investments.
The Republic of Moldova meets incredible conditions for
doing business. Still an unknown place for investments
and growing a business, Moldova offers a competitive
environment. To capitalize on its strategic geographical
position, over the last few years, the Government of the
Republic of Moldova has stepped up its regional integration
efforts, promoting an open economic policy. Thus, the
legal framework has been strengthened, several laws on
the regulation of foreign trade, competition, protection of
industrial property rights, etc. have been adopted.
According to the "Doing Business 2018" report, Moldova
is positioned 44 th out of 190 analyzed economies. We have
succeeded in significantly increasing starting a business,
protecting minority investors and registering property. At
the same time, we have good results in the field of paying
taxes (heading 32) and cross-border trade (heading 35).
FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS — A SOLID BASIS FOR
BUSINESSES
The Republic of Moldova has signed free trade
agreements with the EU, CIS and Turkey (in force since
1 November 2016) and is a member of the Central
Free Trade Agreement CEFTA (since 2007) and World
Trade Organization (WTO), which allows the companies
operating in Moldova to access almost 1 billion potential
consumers.
Moldova has signed bilateral trade-economic cooperation
agreements with 30 countries, bilateral agreements on
mutual promotion and protection of investments — with 44
countries, bilateral agreements to avoid double taxation and
prevent tax evasion — with 49 countries.
At the moment, Moldova is in an active process of
negotiations on the signing of the Free Trade Agreement
with the People's Republic of China.
It is important to mention that the legislative provisions
adopted by Moldovan authorities are in line with the
international legal framework, especially with those of
the European Union. This process will continue, as the
harmonization of legislation is the key to success in
implementing DCFTA commitments. Signed and ratified,
the agreement involves liberalizing trade in goods and
services, free movement of labor, lower taxes, reduction of
technical and non-tariff barriers, abolition of quantitative
restrictions and harmonization of Moldovan legislation
with the EU.
46
In April 2016, the National Strategy for Investment
Attraction and Export Promotion for the period 2016-2020
was approved and seven priority economic sectors were set
up at national level: the information and communication
sector, manufacture of machinery and equipment
(automotive), administrative and support service activities,
manufacture of machinery and parts, manufacture of
textiles, clothing and footwear, electrical equipment and
food and agriculture. The existence of major investment
projects and the expected flow of new strategic investments
contributed to the Government taking additional actions
to protect investors. In this context, the Council for the
promotion of projects of national importance, chaired
by the Prime Minister, was created. The main aim of
the Council is to ensure the beneficial realization in the
Republic of Moldova of investment projects of national
importance, which influence the country's economy and
ensure a stable social and economic development of
Moldova.
TAX SYSTEM
The Republic of Moldova has one of the most competitive
tax systems in the region. From this perspective, there are
49 operational tax treaties on avoiding double taxation
with other jurisdictions. The general Corporate Income
Tax rate is 12%, Value Added Tax is 20% and Social
Security Contributions of 23%. It should be noted that
corporate tax may be reduced by half or more if a company
is resident in the Free Economic Zone. There are other
incentives for businesses worth mentioning: there is no
minimum capital requirement at the start of the business;
incentives for IT employment — partial exemption from
income tax and reduced social contribution; employers will
not pay taxes on the amounts spent on food, transportation
and employee training; companies importing raw materials
receive a holiday for VAT and customs duty if they
subsequently export the final product within 180 days.

FREE ECONOMIC ZONES — OPEN DOORS FOR
INVESTMENTS
One of the attractive features of the Republic of Moldova’s
economy are the opportunities for the foreign investors
offered by the Free Economic Zones, Industrial Parks and
IT Parks — which are an innovation for the Republic of
Moldova. Free Economic Zones are parts of the customs
territory of the Republic of Moldova, economically
separated, strictly delimited on their entire perimeter, which
allow certain types of preferential business activities for
domestic and foreign companies. Currently, Moldova has 7
Free Economic Zones, being allocated proportionally in the
north, central and southern parts of the country.
At the same time, the Republic of Moldova also has the
Giurgiulesti International Free Port (the southern region),
as well as the Free International Airport "Marculesti"
(Floresti, the northern region), both of which have legal
status almost similar to the free economic zones.
The FEZ are known for the facilities they offer: the income
tax imposed on residents' incomes is paid 50% of the rate
established in the Republic of Moldova; companies are
exempt from income tax for 3 years if they invest
$ 1 million and are exempt for 5 years if they invest
$ 5 million; goods imported into/exported from free
economic zones are: exempt from import and export duties
(customs duties); are exempt from excise duty; a zero rate
of value added tax is applied. An important aspect is that
the delivery of the goods to the free economic zones in
the other parts of the customs territory of the Republic of
Moldova are treated as exports.
INDUSTRIAL PARK
Another industrial platform offering a series of opportunities
is the Industrial Park — a relatively new tool for Moldova,
created in 2011. 10 projects have been launched for the
creation and development of industrial parks in the northern,
central and southern parts of the country: "Tracom" in
Chisinau city, "Bionergagro" in Drochia city, "Cimislia" in
Cimislia city, "Raut" in Bălţi city, "CAAN" in Străşeni city,
"Edineţ" in Edineţ city, "Cavi Triveneta Divelopment" in
Străşeni city, "Comrat" in Comrat city, "Durlesti" in Durleşti
city, and "Cahul" in Cahul city. It is worth mentioning the
Moldova IT park concept which represents an attractive
environment for IT businesses — a consolidated single tax
of 7% for residents. The IT Park provides an organizational
platform with a set of innovative mechanisms and incentives
for the IT industry, as well as a predictable and motivating
regulatory framework to facilitate IT business management.
The first IT Park "Tekwill" established in Chisinau, comprises
100 resident companies with a turnover of over 1 billion lei.
This mechanism has laid the foundation for a competitive IT
industry in our country creating prerequisites for emigrated
professionals and companies to return to the country
producing jobs with competitive salaries. At the moment,
there is envisaged a launching of 2 other IT Parks, in the
northern and southern regions of the country.
ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY AND TRADE MISSIONS
ABROAD BUILDING CONNECTIONS
As important instruments that contribute to attract foreign
investments and promote the exports of our country
© Anatolie Poiata
47

Moldovan authorities are focusing on economic diplomacy
and trade missions abroad. Currently, the Republic of
Moldova has 11 Trade Offices established in Russia,
Romania, Ukraine, Belarus, China, Switzerland, Belgium,
Poland, Germany, Italy and Turkey.
GOVERNMENT PRIORITIES FOR 2018 — OPEN
ECONOMY CREATING OPPORTUNITIES
© Anatolie Poiata
48
The Government of the Republic of Moldova is building
on the efforts to create better conditions for business
development by setting out as objectives 1) Improvement
of the country’s road infrastructure, including road
reparations/constructions; 2) Implementation of the
DCFTA; signing the Free trade agreement (FTA) with
China and FTA with EFTA (Norway, Switzerland,
Liechtenstein, Iceland); 3) Strengthening the country’s
energy security — Ungheni gas pipeline — Chisinau;
Security of power supply / diversification of supply
sources; Energy efficiency and use of renewable energy
sources; 4) Bringing investments — IT parks, IT industry
development; promoting tourism and economic diplomacy;
5) Conducting regulatory reforms; 6) Improving
communications systems — access to network; 112
operationalization; Universal postal services.
Moldovan Government is also advancing in creating
attractive business conditions, being achieved thanks to the
implementation of reforms in entrepreneurship activity.
Among the most important is the Regulatory Reform
2016-2017, which aims to optimize permissive acts and
to implement the One Stop Shop solutions.
Revision and optimization of permissive acts will
contribute to the "Business: With Clear Rules"
objective of the Moldova 2020 National Development
Strategy. Another priority is the launch of the One Stop
Shop for the management and release of permissive
acts, assuming the full functionality of the information
system and the issuing of at least 30% of the total
number of permissive documents in 2018 based on the
one-stop shop.
Another important reform is the Reform of the state
control of the entrepreneurial activity, which provides:
Optimization of the number of institutions with
control functions to 13 control bodies (under
Government), and 5 independent regulators.
Procedural reform involving minimum documents,
maximum transparency and rights for entrepreneurs.
The digitization of the control processes, which
provides for the establishment of the State Register
of Single Controls, transparency and predictability of
the inspector's actions. Another important component
of the reform of entrepreneurial activity is the
simplification of the financial and statistical reporting
process by developing and launching a unique reporting
platform at the State Tax Inspectorate, the National
Social Insurance House, the National Insurance
Company in Medicine and the National Bureau of
Statistics. It is also about setting up a Single Report.
GOLDEN VISA PACKAGE — BECOME A CITIZEN
OF MOLDOVA
An interesting fact is that the Government of the
Republic of Moldova approved the Regulation on
Obtaining of Citizenship through Investment (Golden
Visa Package), which regulates the minimum value and
the way of contributing to the Public Investment Fund
for Sustainable Development and Investment in one
of the strategic development areas of the Republic of
Moldova. Citizenship of the Republic of Moldova may
be granted, upon request, to a foreign citizen or stateless
person who knows and complies with the provisions
of the Constitution, has good economic and financial
reputation, presents no danger or risk to public order and
state security, pays contributions to the Public Investment
Fund sustainable development or has made investments in
strategic development areas for 60 months.
DEAR FUTURE GUESTS, DO NOT FORGET
THE UNDENIABLE ADVANTAGES OF VISITING
AND DOING BUSSINESS IN THE REPUBLIC OF
MOLDOVA
For those who have never visited Moldova I warmly extend
this invitation to start the journey of discovery! At the
same time, those who already had the opportunity to visit
Moldova, we will be glad to welcome you again in the future !

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49

ISSAM EL-DEBS COMMENTS
ON THE SYRIAN SITUATION
AS THE HONORARY CONSUL GENERAL OF
THE SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC TO THE PHILIPPINES
Issam El-Debs has been living in the Philippines
for the past 40 years and the number of Syrian
nationals living in the Philippines is estimated at
8000, mostly engaged in investment opportunities or
manufacturing businesses, and well-settled.
50
Apart from the economic migration a lot of Syrian students
are doing their master degrees or following medicine,
dentistry and engineering degrees in the best Philippine
universities.
As a Syrian I wish to express my personal points of view on
the present situation in my country.
Syrians feel thankful to Russia for its assistance to the
Syrian Arab Army in its war against extremist terrorism,
going into a direct confrontation against armed terrorist
groups in the country and liberate territories in control
by terrorist groups. I strongly believe Syria and Russia
share the same goal of combatting global terrorism that
is supported by the extremist Wahhabi ideology, which
represents a danger to both our countries.
Issam-El-Debs (4 th from left) came to the 12 th FICAC World Congress of
Honorary Consuls — Belgian Senat Brussels © Diplomatic World
There is always hope for peace in Syria and the region if we
start by eliminating the extremist terrorist ideology that is
spreading with the help of other stakeholders in our region,
internally and externally. These are the short term goals to
resolve the current crisis. But in parallel we need to achieve
peace throughout the Syrian region.
All parties have a role to play and raise efforts that could
lead to peace in Syria and the region. This might cause
a breakthrough in thinking and acting, far away from
old traditional views and against favouring criminals or
terrorists and their sponsors.
Syria has to prepare several reconstruction plans, and
many laws have been passed to prepare for this eventual
reconstruction phase. The priority for participating in the
reconstruction of Syria will be given to partner countries
who have stood with Syria throughout this long crisis:
Russia, Iran, China, as well as countries like India and
Malaysia. The Syrian government has repeated that those
who left their homes because of the actions of the terrorists
are invited to come back to safe areas that have been
liberated by the Syrian Arab Army. The government will
do everything it can to provide the necessary means to live,
secure a safe environment and create security. We will need
Syrians to come back in this next phase to participate in
the reconstruction of their country. Our children who have
suffered but lived through this conflict and finally survived,
will have the joined responsibility to rebuild this country
step by step into a better Syria. This is the challenge we face
and we need to prepare our youth for this.

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Claire who chose BSB Primary
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To find out why, visit
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51

SECOND EURASIAN
WOMEN'S FORUM
COMES TO A CLOSE
IN ST PETERSBURG
The Second Eurasian Women's Forum took place
in St Petersburg from 19 to 21 September 2018.
The core events on its business programme were held
in the Tavricheskiy Palace and the Parliamentary
Centre, with individual meetings organised in the
Universe of Water Museum Complex.
The Forum was organised by the Federation Council and
the Interparliamentary Assembly of Member Nations of
the Commonwealth of Independent States with the support
of a number of ministries and government agencies. The
Forum enjoyed the support of the Roscongress Foundation.
The highlight of the event was the plenary session entitled
‘Women for Global Security and Sustainable
Development,’ featuring an address by the President of
the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. The head of the
Russian state welcomed Forum organisers and guests.
52
© Roscongress Foundation

© Roscongress Foundation
He noted that the reach of the Forum extended beyond
the scope of this continent. “There are many excellent
historical examples of women assuming responsibility
for important decisions that shaped the fate of entire
states and nations. In today's complex, rapidly changing
world, women are energetically and successfully proving
themselves in a variety of industries and playing an
increasingly important role in strengthening peace
and security and resolving critical socio-economic and
humanitarian problems, which is absolutely natural for a
woman,” the Russian President emphasized.
According to him, the world and its states will only benefit
from a surplus of women's success stories.
The Second Eurasian Women's Forum brought together
approximately 2000 politicians, entrepreneurs, scientists
and public figures from 110 countries. Business sessions,
panel discussions, business dialogues, thematic business
breakfasts, expert and strategic sessions were held as part
of the business programme. Discussions took place in
three thematic areas: ‘Women for Global Security and
Sustainable Development,’ ‘Promoting a Female Agenda:
International Cooperation’ and ‘Global Initiatives in
Women’s Interests and New Opportunities.’
Forum participants focused particularly on special sessions
organised by the United Nations Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO), UNESCO, the World Bank, the
Women 20 sessions, the BRICS Women's Business Club,
the APEC seminar and the presentation of a report by
the World Health Organization. Successful cross-border
business dialogues and thematic business breakfasts were
held. Meetings between the business communities of
Russia, France, Germany, India and China took place as
part of the Women’s Forum. The Forum programme was
further enhanced by the ‘Made in Russia: Exports Created
by Women’ exhibition of projects spearheaded by female
exporters, presentations of success stories, a volunteer
marathon and a colourful presentation of collections by
Russian female designers.
Summing up the event, Speaker of the Federation Council
Valentina Matvienko stressed that “the Forum had
managed to work out measures to further expand the
role of women in politics, the economy and the public
service. We have got a common agenda, an understanding
of existing problems, ways to solve them, and most
importantly, a desire to work together,” the Speaker of the
Federation Council said.
53

According to her, the Forum’s goals were outlined in an
outcome document that would be sent to heads of state,
government, parliament, to the United Nations and other
international organizations.
The Forum is held every three years in St Petersburg on an
ongoing basis. As part of the outcome document adopted
at the Second Eurasian Women's Forum, it has been
proposed that the next Forum be held in 2021 with the
status of Global Women's Forum.
eawf.ru
© Diplomatic World
© Diplomatic World
© Diplomatic World
© Diplomatic World
© Diplomatic World
54
© Diplomatic World
© Diplomatic World

55

GALINA KARELOVA
SPEAKS ABOUT SIGNIFICANT
PROJECTS FOR WOMEN
FROM ONE FORUM TO ANOTHER
Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council of the
Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Galina
Karelova held a briefing on the starting day of the
Second Eurasian Women’s Forum.
She answered questions from the media about the event
and stressed that a large number of significant projects were
created and implemented in the period between the first and
second forums.
the Media in Shaping the Modern Image of Women’s
Leadership: Information for Peace and Sustainable
Development’.
Galina Karelova devoted special attention to the Global Rus
Trade global e-commerce platform. She stressed that such
projects involving consolidation and coordination create
new opportunities for business development and help female
entrepreneurs to find useful contacts and attain a new level
in their work.
Another important initiative was the creation of the
Eurasian Women’s Community internet portal. Karelova
pointed out that the project was developed after the First
Eurasian Women’s Forum. During that Forum, Speaker
of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko gave
instructions to create a register of women’s non-profit
organizations operating in Russia. Such a register was
formed on the Eurasian Women’s Community internet
portal.
The website has evolved and is now a platform that
contains women’s success stories and materials about
projects that aim to support women’s initiatives.
The team of the Eurasian Women’s Community
Information Agency is involved in covering the Second
EWF.
Karelova said it is no coincidence that one of the event’s
56
platforms will be devoted to the theme ‘The Role of
Galina Karelova
© eawfpress.ru

© Barbara Dietrich
The senator said she is convinced that the positive image of
Russia overall in the eyes of foreign leaders of the women’s
movement largely consists of impressions of the women
living in the country, their desire for constructive dialogue,
and the search for ways to peacefully settle differences.
In addition, there will be more discussion platforms as
well as new interactive formats. A number of international
agreements will be signed during the second forum.
In particular, Karelova highlighted the Forum’s youth
platforms.
During the briefing, Karelova also spoke about how the
Second Eurasian Women’s Forum differs from the first
one. This year, she said, the event will be attended by
representatives of more than 120 countries compared with
delegations from 80 countries in 2015.
Answering a question from the media, Karelova said that a
document would be adopted following the Second Eurasian
Women’s Forum to highlight the most important focuses
and determine priorities for coming years.
© eawfpress.ru
57

H.E. DR. AMAL’S SPEECH
AT THE SECOND EUROASIAN
WOMEN’S FORUM
WOMEN FOR GLOBAL SECURITY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Your Excellency VALENTINA MATVIYENKO,
Chair of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation,
Your Excellencies,
58
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great honor to be here with you today, in the
presence of so many inspiring women who have contributed
to great causes both in their countries and globally.
Even though we are gathered today in this important event
to talk about empowerment of women. I see many women
here who have been instrumental in empowering the
world.
I would like to take this opportunity to especially thank
Her Excellency Madam Valentina Matviyenko for her great
leadership in advancing women empowerment throughout
the world, and for organizing this exceptionally important
forum and hosting us in magnificent St Petersburg in
this great nation that was the first in the world in 1783
to appoint a woman as Director of a National Science
Academy (more than 100 years ahead of everyone else).
This is a nation that truly values and reveres the
contributions of its women. The great poet Nikolay
Nekrasov paid tribute to the courage of Russian women,
by a saying of women:
“KUNYA NA-SKAKU ASTANOVIT,
GARAYSHU IZBU VYDOIT”
“Women can stop a galloping horse and enter a burning hut”.
Indeed, throughout history women have had the courage
to step up and do what is necessary to safeguard our world.
And what better way to safeguard our world than to work for
peace and prosperity. In fact, when it comes to negotiating
peace, the evidence is overwhelming:
studies show that when women are involved in peace
negotiations, the resulting agreement is 64% more likely
to succeed and 35% more likely to last at least 15 years.
When women lead the fight against extremism in their
communities, it is more likely that conflicts will be resolved
without violence.
This is because women bridge divides and build dialog and
trust. Women look at peace more holistically and understand
its connection to development and prosperity for all!
Peace is not an agreement — it is a culture. Women
understand this very well, because it is Women who build
cultures of peace, and it is women who are the centrifugal
force that maintains peace.
Building and sustaining such a culture requires women who
lead as mothers; women who lead as sisters; and women
who lead in every facet of life by doing the things that
only women can do exceptionally well — change the world
through tolerance and moderation.
Indeed, women leaders contribute immensely to building
the right culture for peace and development, but it is
the combination of women and men working together,
combining their talents and efforts that accomplishes what
neither can accomplish separately.
As a women leader in my country, the United Arab
Emirates, I am proud of our strategic and lifelong
partnerships with men. To me, peace is like a graceful eagle
that needs both of its two wings; women and men, to soar
high in the sky to reach its destination.

Dr. Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi with President Vladimir Putin
Since the birth of my country in 1971, the mother of
our nation, Her Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak,
President of the General Women’s Union, paved the
way for UAE women to participate in all life aspects
especially the political process and women’s accession to
the Federal National Council. For decades, Her Highness
has been a champion for women empowerment. As a
direct consequence to Her Highness’ leadership, a real
transformation has occurred: today in the UAE we have
transformed from women empowerment to empowering the
community by women.
In 2016, the UAE in cooperation with the IPU was proud to
host the Global Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament.
The Summit concluded with the Abu Dhabi Declaration
that underscores the role of women leaders and women
members of society in overcoming the grand challenges of
our time and of the future.
In fact the Abu Dhabi Declaration is compatible with the
Second Eurasian Women's Forum Declaration. They hold
the same aspirations that we need to work hand in hand to
achieve them.
The UAE is home to a myriad of cultures and many
religions, people coming from more than 200 nationalities
from all over the world are living together in peace and
harmony. Although it is located in a troubled region of the
world, yet it is ranked number 2 in the world in safety and
security by the World Economic Forum and Abu Dhabi,
the capital of the UAE is ranked the safest city in the world
among 338 cities of the world. Peace is inherent in our
culture and sustainable development is one of our core
principles for a prosperous society.
Ladies and gentlemen
When we worship the almighty we are engaging in a private
relationship with him. The way we pray or the language
we use is context. The substance is our internal spiritual
link. But when we engage with each other, what governs us
are the principals of human interaction: Peace, Mercy and
Prosperity.
59

Peace and prosperity have a common enemy, extremism.
It leads to violence and terror.
Tolerance is the antidote to radicalization. Antidote to
populism and antidote to terrorism. Terrorism has no
religion, My religion, Islam,… is about peace. Islam means
peace. There is no such thing as radical Islam. The vast
majority of Muslims around the world abhor terrorism
and radical thought. We refuse to allow a small deranged
minority to highjack our peaceful religion, or any other
religion, and we ask our friends in the international media
not to associate these terrorists in any way with a religion of
peace, the religion of Islam.
The fight against violent extremism is a shared responsibility
for all of us. To win this fight, we all must pitch in, and
work for peace together. To that end, the IPU-UN High-
Level Advisory Group on Countering Terrorism and Violent
Extremism (HLAG) recently put forward a program that
promotes international parliamentary cooperation so that
we can join forces and counter terrorism more effectively
especially when it comes to legislations.
disease and inventing revolutionary technologies that have
changed the world. This disease called terrorism has many
faces: poverty, ignorance, bigotry and intolerance. We
can beat this disease but only through a comprehensive
approach.
We must eradicate the ideologies behind it. This will require
empowering our youth with a culture of tolerance and
moderation, providing them with a secured social and economic
stability, and engaging them more in shaping their future.
Our societies need to be empowered with the right cultural
attitude that is based on respect for human rights and
responsibility for humanity and there is no one better
equipped than women to empower societies towards a
cultural change that will potentially avert the great risks we
are facing.
Our planet will be at peace only when all of us truly win
together. Women has always been the agents of change and
transformation across ages. Women are not any more in
need of power, We are the source of power, so lets change
the world through the greatest power of all,
Ladies and gentlemen,
The soft power.
Our generation must be as visionary and innovative in the
fight on terrorism as we have been innovative in fighting
Thank you
H.E. DR. AMAL ABDULLAH AL QUBAISI
60
Speaker of the Federal National Council (UAE)
Her Excellency Dr. Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi was
elected Speaker of the Federal National Council (FNC)
on November 2015, becoming the first woman to preside
over a parliament in the Arab world. Earlier, she made
history as the first female member of the FNC in 2006,
the first woman to become its Deputy Speaker in 2011
and the first woman to chair an FNC meeting in 2013.
Prior to her election as Speaker of FNC, she held the
position of Director General at the Abu Dhabi Education
Council (ADEC). Under her leadership, ADEC won two
awards from the government of Abu Dhabi for excellence
in government performance — for Best Knowledge
Management and for Best Improvement in Performance.
Throughout her distinguished career, Dr. Amal Al
Qubaisi has overseen several institutions in various
key capacities. As an active member of the Abu Dhabi
Executive Council, she was the first woman on the
Council’s Executive Committee as well as Chair of its
Social Development Committee. In addition, Dr. Al
Qubaisi sits on the board of key institutions, such as the
Family Development Foundation and the Environment

Agency — Abu Dhabi. Her Excellency also serves a jury
panelist for the Zayed Future Energy Prize. HE has also
served for several years as a board member of Zayed
University
For several years, Dr. Amal Al Qubaisi has been
representing the UAE at noted global forums and
conferences, and has carried out official international
assignments, mostly related to activities of the UNESCO
World Heritage Center, United Nations and Inter-
Parliamentary Union (IPU).
A passionate campaigner for social and humanitarian
causes including women’s rights, Dr. Amal was the first
UAE woman member of the IPU and representative
of the Arab Group in the Coordinating Committee of
Women Parliamentarians. She has also been active on
IPU’s Governing Council and Third Standing Committee
on Democracy and Human Rights.
In 2000, Dr. Amal Al Qubaisi earned her Ph.D. in
Architectural Engineering with Honours from the
UK and holds the world’s only doctoral degree on the
conservation of the UAE’s architectural heritage. With
18 years of professional academic experience, she
has served as faculty for six years at the Architectural
Engineering Department at UAE’s College of
Engineering. To her credit, she has received a number
of honorary degrees from educational institutions
worldwide, such as University of Sheffield, UK, and
L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University in Astana,
Kazakhstan and Dublin City University in Ireland.
Dr. Amal has published and written a number of
research papers and studies that have drawn international
recognition. Her work covers subjects as wide-ranging
as the conservation of the UAE’s cultural and historical
heritage, national identity, women-related issues such
as motherhood and childhood, demographics and
political development, political participation and women
empowerment.
Among the many accolades Dr. Amal has received over
the years is the UAE Pioneers Award 2014, presented to
her by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al
Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE
and Ruler of Dubai, for being the first Emirati woman
elected to the Federal National Council.
Dr. Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi
His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan,
Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme
Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, has also
conferred on her the Federation Personality Award for
her political achievements at the national and local level.
Some of her other distinctions include the 2008 Middle
East Excellence Award of Women Leadership, the Abu
Dhabi Award 2008, the Abu Dhabi Medal of Honor
in 2009, and a special recognition in 2007 from Her
Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Mother of the
Nation, for being the first woman member of the UAE
Federal National Council. Awarded the Excellence award
for the best Speaker in the Arab world 2018.
Finally yet importantly nominated for the Asian Business
Leadership Forum (ABLF) Series ABLF Award 2018
November, which is considered as one of highest
accolades, which recognizes leadership influence that
reaches beyond community, country and region. The
ABLF recognized Dr. Amal as one of the most defining
influencers of our time.
61

MARINA VOLYNKINA
ABOUT THE NEW CULTURE
OF POSITIVE THINKING
Projects transforming
the world
62
Marina Volynkina is the Rector of the Institute for the
Humanities and IT (IGUMO), Head of the Eurasian
Women's Community, Head of the all-Russian web-portal
Global Talents. In addition, she is a Doctor of Juridical
Science and a mother of three children.
However, children should be in the first place here,
as Marina Volynkina has many more than three of
them. Whole life, all ideas and initiatives of this active,
purposeful, forward-thinking, and self-confident woman
relate to education and social projects. She is always
open to communication and full of inner warmth. Her
lifestyle presupposes setting global tasks, moving towards
success, and summing up every day’s results with sincere
pleasure.
Since the beginning of her career, Marina Volynkina
has been extremely hardworking. She was promoted
from a legal adviser to a chief of a legal service in the
baking industry and then worked as a lawyer. For more
than 15 years, clients trusted Ms. Volynkina to resolve
labour disputes, family conflicts, and problems related to
household and inheritance. 15 years ago, after becoming
the Rector of IGUMO, Marina set a task before her
educational institution: IGUMO students must become
real professionals upon their graduation. How was that
possible? The only way to achieve that was combining
studies with specialised practical training.
“Today the notion of ‘authorial school’ is known by
many educationalists. However, there is no ‘authorial
higher education institution’ yet. In fact, IGUMO is a
unique educational institution. It actively develops many
authorial educational technologies. The scientists have
proved that knowledge becomes outdated quicker today.
It is important to both provide students with theoretical
knowledge and teach them to build communication,
independently find, select, and digest information and
apply it in everyday life. Innovative institute-based
projects are aimed at developing such qualities and
skills”, said Marina Volynkina.
The project of the Faculties of Design and Photography
titled Days of Contemporary Art (DOCA) resulted
in an IGUMO-based contemporary art exhibition. It
features artists and architects from different countries.
Global Talents project is a free internet platform of
supplementary education for schoolchildren from all
regions of Russia. Thanks to it, school students take part
in contests, exchange knowledge, and find like-minders.
By now, the web-portal unites over 25 thousand users.
IGUMO students and lecturers organise events and
supervise contests. In 2014, the President of Russia
Vladimir Putin supported Global Talents project.
The project contributes to bringing up the students’
high responsibility, true values, and sound spiritual
development.
“When my students and I understood that the need to
do good became essential, that it was both pleasant
and useful, we decided to take on a new project. This
is how the Eurasian Women’s Community news agency
appeared”.
The EWC is the only independent social mass media
of federal coverage founded on the basis of a higher
education institution. It is aimed at promoting socially
responsible journalism. All its publications are positive
and motivating. The EWC avoids ‘gutter press’ behaviour
and criminal incidents. Our journalists, translators,
and photographers form the image of modern Russian
women and demonstrate the new role of women in the
world transformation including women-creators, women-

Second Eurasian Women's Forum in St Petersburg
© eawfpress.ru
leaders, women-entrepreneurs, and women as public
figures. The EWC shares about talents, personal traits
and life attitudes of women often neglected by media
today.
According to Marina Volynkina, the news agency
team had an important task to break old stereotypes
concerning the image of women, remedy the lack of
positive information about women’s achievements in
media, and prevent equating any women’s activity with
radical feminism. The website is full of women’s success
stories for readers to understand that positive journalism
not only has the right to exist but also must support the
information balance in society, allowing people to believe
in a brighter future.
By 2018, the EWC published over 1000 original articles
and had over 1.5 million online visitors. It has its official
English version. Location coverage of our readers is
more than 100 countries. 38% of readers are from
Russia, 25% — from Europe, 23% — from Asia, 14% —
from the USA. But Marina Volynkina does not stop on
the attained.
“Initially our task was to change the image of Russian
women. Today, one of our global goals is to share about
women worldwide, motivate them to fulfil their potential,
prevent war threats, make children happy, keep their
families together, and make our world a better place. In
IGUMO, we teach students to use the ability of media
to influence worldviews and feelings of people in order
to breed humanistic thought forms. As a result, we make
people free of stereotypes, mutual mistrust, and aggression
and direct them to mutual understanding, support,
constructive dialogue for the sake of their individual and
social stability in general.”
Negative content in Russia’s media can harm people’s
mind and spirit. That is why, as the moderator of an
open debate on the role of women in positive media at
the Second Eurasian Women’s Forum, Ms. Volynkina
touched upon the balance of negative and positive
content. Information consumed by people may be
compared to food: it can give energy or cause intoxication.
“People’s apathy or aggression is the reaction of what
their brains were fed by newspapers and TV”, said
Tatyana Chernigovskaya, well-known neuroscientist
and psycholinguist. Elena Makarova, Editor-in-Chief of
63

Second Eurasian Women's Forum in St Petersburg
© eawfpress.ru
Geometry of Destiny Magazine, called on journalists to
responsibly approach what they write and foresee what
effect their information may cause.
Marina Volynkina and her institute have become a
compass that guides people around. They teach how to
love what you do and inspire people.
64
Minimising the amount of toxic information will free
space for healthy and inspiring content. Opponents
of socially responsible journalism believe that media
are business and negative news are sold better. Larisa
Rudakova, President of MediaLine Publishing House,
believes that the growth of corporate media broadcasting
mostly positive news is a good counterargument.
Most readers of social, corporate, and news media are
women able to smooth things over. Women’s leadership
in media will give the world a positive impulse. Barbara
Dietrich, Editor-in-Chief of the DIPLOMATIC WORLD
Magazine, believes that the future of journalism goes hand
in hand with constructive international diplomacy.
The EWC team provided coverage of the Second EWF.
Marina Volynkina believes that now her students have
mastered the new journalism. The Rector applies
acquiring knowledge through mind and heart to the
education system in IGUMO. One may say that
For Marina Volynkina, the notions of ‘woman’, ‘spirit’,
‘child’, ‘creativity’, and ‘education’ are closely interrelated.
IGUMO Faculties constantly cooperate.
“As a leader, I adhere to the concept of doing good.
So I teach all our students. I have always wanted to do
something special to benefit not only myself but people
around, to attract their interest, and surprise them.
My Candidate’s and Doctor’s theses were dedicated to
innovations. All my life is about innovations and constant
search for ideas!”
Marina Volynkina believes that progressiveness and energy
of teachers, their personal desire to improve the world are
essential in upbringing the new generation. Her students
are thirsty for knowledge. Isn’t it the manifestation of a
real talent?
Text by Tina Stankevich
Translated by Nikolay Gavrilov

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65

H.E. BUDDHI ATHAUDA
AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY AND PLENIPOTENTIARY
OF SRI LANKA TO FRANCE, SPAIN, PORTUGAL, MONACO
AND ANDORRA AND PERMANENT DELEGATE TO UNESCO
66
As Ambassador of Sri Lanka, what are today the
most important focus points and priorities for you
in Paris?
Maybe I can start answering this question with a strategic
point of view first. Sri Lanka is a neutral country in the
world of geopolitics. We basically stay neutral because
we are friends with Pakistan, we are friends with India,
we are friends with China, we are friends with Russia,
we are friends with America, we are friends with the EU.
And also, Asia has grown during the last 9 years. Nobody
can actually know how big the growth of Asia is. For
example, every year about hundred million people climb
out of poverty to a middle status. So the last 9 years, nine
hundred millions came out of poverty. It is a huge, huge
growth. And all this happened without great declarations
that we were going to create hundreds of millions new
jobs. It just happened.
And Sri Lanka is also part of this Asian phenomena. We
also have tripled our GDP in the last 8 years. We have also
added 30 000 hotel rooms, and another 60 000 unofficial
hotel rooms. If you go out of Colombo, people with the
means have built a nice, clean room with air conditioning
and a nice, clean bath room. So they rent this out from
their home, like a bed and breakfast. We have 60 000
rooms like that throughout Sri Lanka. All this happened
in the last 8/9 years and Sri Lanka is a very small country.
Asia has known a gigantic growth, and this is also the case
for Sri Lanka: we are importing more cars than ever. We
are becoming the next big city in Asia. In other words:
you have Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore and the
next big city is Colombo. So this is how the whole world
is positioning it. That is why China is building a whole
new financial city in Colombo like in Dubai: 500 acers of
land in the Ocean, right next to Colombo. It is going to
be a new city. And Sri Lanka also is redesigning Colombo
City because Colombo is an old city: during the British
colonial days Colombo was a very small area. But the
city has overgrown with about 3 more million people all
around it. So we are expanding the Colombo metropolitan
region and we are developing with a new metro system,
new shopping malls, new schools and entertainment and
zoning it with the high tech for manufacturing outside
the city now. And the Parliament moved to outside
Colombo City, to another region. So this whole region is
encompassed in this new modern ‘Colombo Megapolis
Program’. And to build under this program proper
facilities and infrastructure for the next hundred years, we
are going to need at least 90 billion dollars. So that means
we are going to build a new train system and underground
train system, transport hubs, shopping malls, hospitals,
more highways, more parks, more education centers,
universities. Such constructions are going along with a
considerable economic growth.
But as you know, Sri Lanka is a very pretty island.
Everybody expect Sri Lanka to be a Paradise. I give you
just a few numbers and you will understand. Because
Sri Lanka is an island and the ocean is around, we have
dolphins and whales as wildlife in the ocean, right next
to Sri Lanka coast. And then we have elephants in the
middle of the country. So this is one of the few places
where you have all the big mammals in one place. And
the migratory birds, they come in the Winter from all
over the world to the north of Sri Lanka where they make
nests and new babies and in the Summer they fly back to
Europe. This is a first migration. The same happens with
the butterflies. There are 300 different types of butterflies
and 150 different types of fruit growing in Sri Lanka. So
it is like a Paradise. It was a natural Paradise long time
ago. But now with the plastics and the new buildings all
over, people need to structure properly, zone and manage
it properly and regulate properly. So that is why we are
implementing this new, modern Colombo Megapolis
Program. In this way Sri Lanka will stay cleaner.

President Macron and H.E. Buddhi Athauda
Sri Lanka has also one of the oldest government rules
about taking care of the environment. About 2000 years
ago, the Sri Lankan King declared to the people that the
land and the trees and the rivers don’t belong to humans
and that humans are only custodians of these things. So
you only should use what you want and leave the rest for
the future. So we are raised with the idea, very strong in
our culture and DNA, that we always want to be clean to
the world. Keep it clean, don’t pollute it. So only the last
20/30 years, things got really dirty now: we have a lot of
plastic and chemicals and fertilizers. All these chemicals
are destroying our atmosphere and the environment, also
with a huge impact coming from automobiles imported
in Sri Lanka. With the industrious revolution in Europe,
there were in Germany at a certain time no fish in the
rivers. Now they have cleaned it and fish are back in the
river. Before this happens to Sri Lanka, we are trying to
make it the right way.
Sri Lanka’s agenda is set from my point of view as
Ambassador of Sri Lanka to France, Spain, Portugal,
Monaco and Andorra with Plenipotentiary powers on
the one side, from a bilateral relations point of view,
and on the other side as Ambassador to UNESCO. I am
appointed to a lot of multilateral agencies like UNESCO
and I am also on the Board of UNESCO. Recently, I
got elected to be in the global committee for intangible
cultural heritage. This is very dear to a country like ours.
Intangible culture is something people don’t think of but
these are dying sometimes in some cultures. They are
going away, so it is nice to register these things and keep
it safe or at least take inventory. One day people would
know these manners or habits, way of living, practices,
entertainment, games, etc. Many things you can do under
the intangible culture heritage. Medicine practice could
also be cultural. We are meeting again in that committee
in a couple of months. Like all the cultural heritage
sites recognized by UNESCO all around the world, the
intangible culture is the next big thing coming up.
I am giving you this background before I tell you what we
are trying to do with France as Ambassador. With this
growth and with this impact, Sri Lanka wants serious
and deep relations with all blocks of geopolitical players.
For example, here we have the EU as one group. Then
you have China as one group, India as another group,
America as another group, in Asia you cannot of course
forget Japan. When we do things, we share our projects.
For example, maintaining transparency and accountability
which we organized in the country after a difficult period
67

68
in Sri Lanka. The city subway system we are developing
in Sri Lanka is another example. Then we have a port,
we have an airport, we have oil tanks. There are different
economic clusters with new strategic partners. For
example, we have given our port to China and we have
given our petroleum bunker system and an airport to
India. China is now also engaged in building that new city
for us.
Now, what is missing in this picture is Europe’s role in
Asia. Asia has known such strong growth, but Europe or
America has not yet benefited from this growth. They are
so cautious and risk-averse that most of their companies
didn’t go to Asia and enjoyed the growth. Asian brands
came for Asia and then also came to Europe and America.
But you don’t find Apple buildings or many other brands
in Asia. Something is missing in this formula where
Europe is Europe and then America is over there, but Asia
is growing. But now suddenly people have realized that we
should join Asia and enjoy the growth and have a better,
integrated relationship.
This is why I am also pursuing a deeper relationship
with the countries given to me. We are also strategically
planning to give some of our projects to Europe, especially
France, Portugal and Spain, Monaco and Andorra. I can
only talk about the countries to which I am appointed as
Ambassador of Sri Lanka. I cannot talk about the work
of my colleague ambassadors of Sri Lanka. So we are
allocating strategically some projects to France, Spain,
Portugal, Monaco. And the good thing is: they also want
to be a part of Asia. When I speak to President Macron I
can see — and also from his speeches I noticed — that he
wants to be part of Asia’s growth. And that will benefit
France and Asia.
France has great technologies. Some other countries
have branded themselves as engineering partners, but
France has everything. People underestimate this: they
have aerospace engineering groups, high-tech agriculture
and various other highly developed technologies. End of
the day, in agriculture the productivity per acer return
is very important. Countries like the Netherlands,
France, Spain are very big in agriculture. We are working
with them because our target is to increase agriculture
productivity by 1700 % in the years to come. We can get
there by changing a few habits we have. We see that out
of this 100 billion opportunities we have in Sri Lanka, at
least 5 billion should be given to my region. That is 5%
and 5 billion worth of projects. France is a very big deal
and for everybody 5 billion is a very big deal. We have a
reason to work well together. We have reason to deepen
our friendship because the modern world is all about
economic diplomacy.
I was specially elected as Ambassador to France because
France and Sri Lanka have had more focus on culture all
this time, but not in an economic way. It is very poorly
done. But France is a center for fashion, center for
perfumes and center for top brand clothing and Sri Lanka
is also one of the biggest players in these fields. We are in
the top ten for garment industry. We have the world’s best
gem stones. The world’s best blue sapphire comes from Sri
Lanka. And the best cinnamon comes from Sri Lanka: no
country has that cinnamon. That is why some countries
came to colonize Sri Lanka because of this specific plant.
And when you use real cinnamon, it has not the bad
effects of other, somehow similar plants. So the perfume
industry, garment and fashion industries, gem stones are
important in Sri Lanka. Ceylon tea is even distributed
worldwide. We are also into gloves manufacturing,
especially rubber gloves manufacturing.
And it is not only gloves we make out of rubber because
we have a lot of rubber plantations. Recently we focused
in IT. The most of the world stock markets — nobody
knows this — run on Sri Lanka software: London and
New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq, Chicago Board of
Trade and 17 other countries run their stock market with
our software. The London Stock Exchange bought one of
these software companies and they moved headquarters to
New York and Boston. But these are run by Sri Lankans.
And most of the travel related software behind the scenes
is still run by Sri Lankans. So we are a unique country
from that point of view. These are the sectors that we
are targeting for the world: IT, gem stones, garment and
fashion industry and of course tourism.
We are going to build a beautiful country. Indians and
Pakistanis and Bangladeshis can take a one hour flight to
Sri Lanka and have the best honeymoon or best vacation,
a 2 billion people market, right next to us. This is why
China is investing in Sri Lanka: we are going to be the
next big thing. Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok,
Colombo. And at this stage our real estate is still cheap
right now. So Sri Lanka is one of the best places to put
money down now because if China finished building the
city, prices will rise. I don’t speak about the coming three

months, but about a perspective of 5 years. And the real
estate market is all about buying low and selling high, like
the stock exchange market. When it becomes expensive it
is too late to buy. So it is now particularly interesting for
the real estate market to buy hotels and office buildings
because tourism in Sri Lanka has increased with 500 %
over the last 8 years. We had about 450 000 tourists and
now we are framing that we might get 2.5 million tourists.
That brings us smoothly to our second question.
What is the position of Sri Lanka towards the
New Silk Road between Europe and China,
towards the Belt and Road Initiative?
Prince Albert of Monaco and H.E. Buddhi Athauda
Just a few years ago, all the top business magazines and
popular magazines all over Europe and America were
writing: ‘China is building a New Silk Road.’ When I
meet top business people in France, they react more
positively about the Belt and Road Initiative and if they
see that China has done already the background check of
a business or industry in the context of the Belt and Road
Initiative, then they have confidence about this company
or sector. So it is great. All this time it looked bad, now
suddenly they are complementing us. I am glad we have
taken a closer position to China as a trading partner. And
all the ships that come from China, pass Sri Lanka before
they come to Europe. So Sri Lanka is going to be a huge
shipping port in the coming years. Now 30 000 ships pass
through Sri Lanka. Therefore Sri Lanka has a role to play
in taking care of the Indian Ocean, to make and keep
the Indian Ocean clean and safe. We don’t want ships to
dump oil in the Ocean, we don’t want ships to throw their
trash in the Ocean. So it is a process of strengthening
our coast guard and I like France and the EU to help us
in building a really good coast guard network with an
emergency communication and control center, with a
Prince Albert of Monaco and H.E. Buddhi Athauda
69

70
proper radar. So we could send our ships and rescue for
emergencies. If there are oil spills we can take care of it.
If there are people sinking, committing piracy or being
victim of piracy, we can take care of it. If there is damage
on a ship, we can go and help them. We are in the process
of building a great coast guard and I think to maintain
our independence we need countries like India and many
other great countries, to help us build this coast guard.
What do you think about the evolutions in
Renewable Energy and the world-wide fight
against Climate Change?
I think that the world should know that the renewable
energy industry is a very important aspect of the UN
Climate Agreement of Paris. Globally almost every
country has agreed to reduce the pollution and emission.
I won’t repeat all the details here, that would take us too
long. Out of that, renewable energy is a very important
component and that should be a 3 to 4 trillion dollar
global economic impact with the change towards
renewable energy. With that we are going to create a lot of
jobs. We are going to get a huge amount of pollution out
of our way. And we can make energy so much cheaper.
Research on this topic has shown that three components
are very inefficient in this world now: funding the energy,
the regulatory framework — globally we don’t have a
standard regulatory framework — and technology. If
financers investing in energy in different countries have a
same standard set of regulations or regulatory framework,
investors can operate in Africa, Asia, South America or
Europe much more easily. Right now there are so many
unknown facts in investment, that this is where the magic
is now. So I am advocating to the world: let us build a
standard platform for a regulatory framework where we
can cut down the costs. The same thing for financing.
And if we can have more efficiency in technology to the
right market, at the right place, at the right occasion, you
can also reduce costs. So if we can bring efficiency in
these three categories, we believe that we can reduce the
cost of a power plant about 40 % or more. That is a huge
amount. So that is my global concept for you. Regarding
Sri Lanka, we have a royal decree of 2000 years old about
how we should save our environment and look after the
world. We are only the custodians. With this cultural
attitude and related policy culture, we have all the right
thinking and frameworks for building further our beautiful
island as explained above. We are also part of the Paris
Agreement. We are definitely making our effort to build
renewable energy power plants as much as we can now.
At one time we had a lot of hydro but this has limitations,
and therefore we are now focusing on solar and wind.
What are your ideas on a common, cultural
ground or framework for which the European
Union is dying to formulate and to find there the
necessary support in the present context?
I think the way to look at culture is not to unite culture
but to appreciate each culture separately, because then you
really taste it. When you have two kinds of different cake:
a carrot cake and a strawberry cake. You don’t mix the two
cakes together. If you do that, you are ruining the whole
thing. The same with cheese cake and apple pie. You eat
your cheese cake separately: so fantastic! Then you ate
your apple pie separately, like that. These cultures are so
beautiful and so rich, I would not mix it at all. You should
keep it so preciously.
Actually, people who get to travel around the world, they
have a different mentality than people who are uneducated
and don’t get to travel. And most of the trouble in the
world are caused by this uneducated group because they
can be brainwashed and for some person’s interest they
can be manipulated. I wish everybody could go around
the world an spend a few years in different cultures. How
rich you become! I have travelled all over the world and
it is amazing to see the difference in mentality when you
have not been exposed to another culture. This cultural
question is important. UNESCO has a big role to play and
I think with the Asian growth UNESCO has not kept up
with the size and capacity. As modern Ambassadors we
are pushing UNESCO to a new ground and a new level of
expansion and new level of mission. We also just have a
new Secretary-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, who
is also a French lady: she herself is a symbol of different
cultures, she has mixed French and North-African origin.
We have to think as Google, as Apple, as I-Phone. When
you think of a larger, faster growth in an always bigger
world, UNESCO is becoming smaller and smaller: almost
insignificant. I am very embarrassed to tell you and you
can quote me on this: Harvard University has a 179 billion
dollar saving account — they can live on interest — and
poor, little UNESCO has 500 million dollar every year
and they are worrying about how to make the pay-roll.
It is a shame. 190 countries are members and Harvard

University doesn’t have any country member, only the
student’s tuition is paid and they manage to raise funding.
So UNESCO has lost the way of fund raising but they
have such a respected brand name. I think we are going
to reintroduce UNESCO in a much more focused way
and UNESCO is going to be a part of the world because
UNESCO is the symbol and the leader, the catalyst and
the vision for education, culture and science. Three main
subjects. In fact there should be three UNESCO’s. It
became a bit confusing when Communication went out,
but we are leaders in these three fields.
As part of this big next step for UNESCO, we are not
only going to train the students to learn a trade. They
should also be taught about how to live in society, how
to respect women, how to raise a confident child. We are
going to take them away from that bad broken family cycle.
This broken family phenomena is probably the biggest
problem in the world I think, because other problems we
can give a proper solution. The Broken Family has many
reasons: sometimes the father doesn’t know how to talk
to kids, sometimes he is a hot tempered person getting
mad and beating up the children or the wife in front of
the children or the sisters in front of their brothers, with
as consequence that these young men later in life don’t
respect women. There is a big problem if the children
don’t experience the love, kindness, mindfulness and
compassion. It is almost a Buddhist thing. At these ages,
children learn always something from their parents. I
am spearheading therefore a very strong push to that.
I am going to set up a model school very soon. Global
companies are joining me to support this initiative. So we
are very excited and we have all the components in place
in UNESCO. Now we are going to build the first one very
soon.
Indeed. From all sides comes also the question
for a geopolitically rightly thinking diplomatic
platform, a think tank considering respectfully
and sustainably the needs of the others, a think
tank not only occupied with the rights of people
but also with their duties. Humans have rights
and also duties.
In the near future, H.E. Buddhi Athauda and Diplomatic
World are going to cooperate and join forces in order
to present such ideas on Values, the Breakdown of the
Broken Family and Common Cultural Ground through
book publications and a lectures tour around Europe and
the World, raising funding for these common projects;
they will join forces in order to advocate the creation for
a think tank to support, defend and disseminate further
these ideas.
The 39 th session of UNESCO’s General Conference
elected Audrey Azoulay as Director-General of UNESCO,
succeeding Irina Bokova. She took office on 15 November
for a four-year term.
A graduate of France’s Ecole Nationale d’Administration
and of the Paris Institut d’Etudes Politiques, she holds a
diploma in Business Administration from the University of
Lancaster (UK).
Having worked in the sector of culture since the start
of her professional career, Audrey Azoulay has notably
focused on the funding of French public broadcasting and
on the reform and modernization of France’s film support
system. She has also served the European Commission
providing her expertise on issues concerning culture and
communication.
https://en.unesco.org/director-general
Barbara Dietrich and Maarten Vermeir
71

VILVOORDE
Enjoy a unique eating experience
Distinctive dishes made with innovative techniques
Innovative culinary concepts by topchef Marc Clément
Various works of art by renowned artists are integrated symbiotically
Easily accessible large parking lot
Innovative gastronomy
You will be cooked for by top chef Marc Clément, who has certainly earned
his stripes in the world of gastronomy. The dishes are prepared using innovative
techniques based on Marc’s latest passion.
The Bistronomy team serves affordable gastronomic delights in the form of
fresh, distinctive creations that will surprise even the most refined palates.
In short, gastronomy with a nod to the future.
Opening times
Open from Monday to Saturday (from 6 pm on Saturday).
Monday & Tuesday from 6 pm by reservation for groups of
20 people or more.
Sunday closed.
Info & reservations
www.thebistronomy.com
02 263 01 31
Indringingsweg 1, 1800 Vilvoorde
Topchef Marc Clément
72

INNOVATION WORKSHOP
INNOVATION
WORKSHOPS
Innovation is not an empty buzzword. On the contrary, it is a necessity to be able to really make a difference.
To grow. To become more profitable. To differentiate from your competitors.
The world is changing rapidly: virtual money, 3D printing, nano and biotechnology, behavioural economics, autonomous driving cars,
drone technology, etc.
You are also no doubt aware of the phenomenon of ‘disruption’. Innovation comes in shocks. It changes us, as people and as customers;
it changes markets, regulations, property rights, cooperation, competition & services.
It offers opportunities, but it also creates threats.
And what will be the impact of those megatrends ?
All of this leads companies and organisations to some key questions:
• Will my company become and innovation leader or a victim ?
• What will my company, customer, employee, market and product look like over time ?
• Will my company still exist ?
• What should my strategy for the future look like ?
• How do I start the necessary changes ?
The professional workshops at Living Tomorrow are practice oriented and customized. You see, hear, feel and do; in short, you “experience”
the future of your company or organization.
(suitable for B2B, B2C of B2B2C)
There are 3 types of innovation sessions, tailored to your needs and expectations:
PREPARE YOUR BUSINESS
AND YOUR STAFF
FOR THE FUTURE
73

INSPIRATION TOUR
WHAT ?
The Inspiration Tour is much more than just a guided tour at Living Tomorrow.
Your visit is prepared in collaboration with an Innovation Coach. Thus,
we can access a selection of hundreds demonstrated innovations, tailored to
the needs of your organisation and employees.
We take you behind the scenes of these developments. How did these innovations emerge ? What
insights do they deliver ? What feedback do we receive ?
They are a source of inspiration to prepare your organization for the market of tomorrow.
WHAT DO YOU GAIN ?
During the personalised Inspiration Tour through Living Tomorrow you will experience tomorrow’s
environment in which your company or organisation will operate. We speak a clear language
based on real-life cases.
It is a way to offer your employees and customers an interesting foresight on the road to tomorrow.
DURATION
1,5 hour
“Inspiring location, dedicated and enthousiastic coach and real-time future inspiration”
Marketing Manager Belgian Banking Industry
FUTURE TRENDS SESSION
WHAT ?
You want more than just an Inspiration Tour ?
The Future Trends Session puts innovation in a broader perspective. The Inspiration Tour is preceded by
an energetic Future Trend presentation.
This presentation by an Innovation Manager at Living Tomorrow is completely tailor made for your organization, the purpose of the day,
and the level of the participants.
The session starts with a 1.5 hour interactive exploration of the megatrends of the future and the impacts they will have on your organisation.
What is your strategy map of tomorrow ? Who will be your customers ? Which technologies will play a role ?
Living Tomorrow offers in these Future Trends Sessions 20 years of experience and feedback from hundreds of collaborations and millions
of visitors. The participants receive interactive assignments that will bring the experience during the subsequent Inspiration Tour
to a higher and more personalised level.
WHAT DO YOU GAIN ?
Participants return home with insights into the megatrends of tomorrow, their impact on your organisation, and the analysis of case
studies that they discovered during this half-day.
74

DURATION
3 to 4 hours
“The Future Trends Session is an excellent source of inspiration. The alliances, the tools and the practical
examples in the tour are very useful food for thought in the session to shape innovation in your own
organisation.”
General Manager Dutch Retail Company
INNOVATION WORKSHOP
WHAT ?
Are you looking for a full-day offsite on innovation ? Than this workshop
format is the right one for you.
It consists of 3 parts:
1. The Future Trends Session tailored to your business and formatted and prepared in line
with the goals you have in mind for that day.
2. The interactive Inspiration Tour provides, in a relaxing way, countless new ideas.
3. During the Innovation Workshop the group of participants is divided into small teams and
they will actively work with all the knowledge and insights the gained from the previous two
parts. This workshop takes place under the close supervision and faciliatation of our experienced
Innovation Managers.
They offer the right tools to search through ‘idea generation’, for innovative opportunities. The
ideas are then ranked according to several criteria. Lastly, new value propositions and business
models are created through ‘break out’ sessions with your employees.
WHAT DO YOU GAIN?
The workshop is the best investment in the case that you want to take a head start in innovation ‘bootcamp-style’ with your team(s),
customers and stakeholders. It is a healthy mix of fun, relaxation and top education; no boring theory, but always linked to practice, to
tomorrow, and to Living Tomorrow with its innovation center of 3500m². It’s all about sharing knowledge with other partners and receiving
feedback from countless visitors. We stand for innovation and the future!
DURATION
6 hours
“This innovation workshop was a day above any expectations. I already have strongly recommended a visit
to many people in my network”
Country Manager Scandinavian Pharma Company
CONTACT US VIA:
info@livingtomorrow.com
www.livingtomorrow.com
+32 2 263 01 33
Indringingsweg 1, B-1800 Vilvoorde
75

LAST AUGUST, SHEBA INTERNATIONAL
HOSTED A DELEGATION FROM THE
MINISTRY OF HEALTH OF THE
REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN
This delegation was part of a large-scale plan
aimed at improving the healthcare system in
Uzbekistan. Initiated by a Presidential Directive,
working Committees like this one were to study the
experience of countries with advanced healthcare
systems. Israel was one of the chosen countries.
On July the 23 rd , prior to the arrival of the Uzbek delegation,
a meeting was held in Brussels at the Embassy of Uzbekistan
to the Kingdom of Belgium, initiated by Barbara Dietrich,
CEO and owner of Diplomatic World Magazine.
H.E. Ambassador Dilyor Khakimov hosted the meeting
together with the Embassy's First Secretary, Babur Sabirov,
and Barbara Dietrich from DW. Sheba Medical Center was
represented by Ulrike Haen from the International Public
Affairs Division, and Prof. Elhanan Bar-On, Director of
the Israel Center for Disaster Medicine and Humanitarian
Response.
Two main subjects were discussed during a working luncheon:
1. Development of ties in tourist medicine including
sending patients from Uzbekistan for treatment at Sheba
2. Development of a plan of action in terms of Sheba's
involvement in the improvement of the medical system
in Uzbekistan, i.e. by targeting the fields that need and
can be improved in the various medical specialties
(either in hospitals, HMO's or else), as well as possible
visits by Sheba specialists to develop programs and
strategies in Uzbekistan or bring medical staff from
Uzbekistan to Sheba.
76
Uzbekistan Delegation to Sheba
© Sheba Medical Center

Contract signing: Gulnara Vil'evna Urmanova Uzbekistan Deputy Minister of Health,
H.E. Said Rustamov Ambassador of Uzbekistan to Israel, Michal Raviv-Reisman Director SMC International Division
© Sheba Medical Center
Upon return from Brussels and pursuant to a request from the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs to Sheba International, a special
3-day educational visit program was put together for this first
Uzbek delegation.
During their visit with Sheba Medical Center's International
Department, the delegation got to know Sheba as Israel's
leading hospital and learned to understand the Israeli
healthcare system through lectures, meetings, tours and
discussions. Within the framework of a potential collaboration
between Sheba International and the Uzbek Ministry of
Health, the ministry will profit from the know-how and
experience of Sheba.
At the end of the visit and in the presence of the Ambassador
of Uzbekistan to Israel, Sheba International and the Ministry
of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan signed an MOU
in which both sides declared their intention for future
collaboration in regard to any reform plan implemented in the
healthcare system of Uzbekistan.
Furthermore, the Deputy Minister of Health stated that
the Uzbek Health Committee will not visit other previously
selected countries because they found everything they were
looking for at Sheba Medical Center in Israel.
Prof. Yitshak Kreiss, Director General of the Sheba Medical
Center, welcomed the delegation and voiced his personal
belief in regard to medicine serving as a bridge between
people and nations who have one common interest: help
people in need! Prof. Kreiss offered the Uzbek delegation
all the help and assistance they wish to receive from Sheba
International.
The delegation was comprised of the Deputy Minister of Health
of the Republic of Uzbekistan, head of the delegation; the
Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Chamber of the Parliament
of Uzbekistan; from the office of the President of Uzbekistan —
the leading consultant from the department for legal support of
reforms; additional representatives from the Uzbek Ministry of
Health and representatives from private sectors.
Brussels Embassy of Uzbekistan: Dr. Elhanan Bar-On,
Ulrike Haen Sheba, Barbara Dietrich CEO Diplomatic World,
H.E. Dilyor Khakimov Ambassador of Uzbekistan © Diplomatic World
77

ANNIVERSARY CHARITY GALA
THE CHAIM SHEBA MEDICAL CENTER
BELLEVUE PALACE BERLIN
German Friends of Sheba recently held a gala in
honor of the hospital’s 70 th anniversary which was
hosted by Germany’s first lady, Elke Büdenbender
at Bellevue Palace, the home she shares with
Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Germany’s president.
Director General of Sheba Medical Center, Professor
Yitshak Kreiss and his wife Inbal were there, along with
Isaac Herzog, Chairman of the Jewish Agency, and Jeremy
Issacharoff, Israel’s Ambassador to Germany.
The First Lady, a judge in Germany, spoke about Sheba’s
accomplishments in the region “Tonight we are all united by
the wish to honor and support a hospital that does great and
marvelous things — and has been, for 70 years… A hospital
like this is a shining example for all people in the region,
and it gives hope that peaceful coexistence, as practiced in
Sheba, will be possible one day in the future.”
Woman for Peace: Eva-Luise Köhler Former First Lady of Germany,
Elke Büdenbender First Lady of Germany, Barbara Dietrich, CEO
Diplomatic World, Christina Rau Former First Lady of Germany
and Peace Dove by Ulrike Bolenz
© Diplomatic World
78
Nicole Staudinger German Sheba Friends Board Member, Isaac (Bougie) Herzog Chairman of the Jewish Agency, Michal Herzog, Dirk Gaedeke Vice-
Chairman of the Sheba Friends Board, Eva Luise Koehler Former First Lady and Honorary President of the Board, Elke Buedenbender First Lady, Prof.
Yitshak Kreiss Director General Sheba Medical Center, Imbal Kreiss, Christina Rau Former First Lady and Honorary Board Member; Ada Cegla Director
International Public Affairs Sheba Medical Center, Israeli ambassador to Germany H.E. Jeremy Issacharoff with wife Laura Kam and daughter Ella
© Sheba Medical Center

EUROPEAN PEACE PILLAR
AUSTRIAN AMBASSADOR — RESIDENCE IN BRUSSELS
H.E. ELISABETH KORNFEIND AMBASSADOR OF AUSTRIA
The “Columns of Peace” by the German-Belgian artist, Ulrike
Bolenz, symbolises the most fundamental of the core aims
of the European Union — uniting and reconciling nations
and peoples within Europe. Reminding us that our continent
has been torn apart many times over the centuries by very
destructive wars, particularly during two World Wars in the
twentieth century, these Columns call for the preservation
of peace, individual freedoms and shared values, and respect
for cultural diversity, alongside efforts to promote economic
growth, employment and a better quality of life for all
Europeans. The Council of the European Union, bringing
together the members’ heads of state and government, plays
a key role in assuring these goals. Thus, these Columns of
Peace will be loaned to each country in turn as it assumes the
six-monthly rotating Presidency of the Council, starting with
the Presidency of Bulgaria in January 2018 — and now in the
Austrian Ambassador Residence in Brussels.
The artist placed beautiful images of joyful, laughing women
at the core of her Columns, because mothers embody love
for their children, while teaching them kindness, moral
values and courage. In essence, Ulrika Bolenz is telling us
that women — as mothers — are to be treasured for bringing
each child to appreciate the joys of life and the precious
values of harmony, peace and cooperation among nations,
peoples, cultures and religions.
Austrian Ambassador — Residence in Brussels
© Diplomatic World
79

THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
FOR DENIS MUKWEGE
CONGOLESE GYNECOLOGIST
Denis Mukwege is known for his practice of
reconstructive surgery for women victims of war
rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Panzi Hospital, designed to allow women to deliver
safely in 1999, is rapidly becoming a rape clinic as Kivu sinks
into the horror of the Second Congo War (1998-2003) and
his mass rapes. This "war on women's bodies", as the doctor
calls it, continues today. "In 2015, there was a noticeable
decrease in sexual violence. Unfortunately, since the end of
2016-2017, there is an increase ", he confided in March.
Already awarded in Europe, the United States and Asia
for its action, serious and sweet launched in 2014 a male
feminist movement, V-Men Congo. Since 2015, while
the DRC sinks into a political crisis enamelled with
violence, The Man who repairs women, as described in
a documentary on his fight has denounced repeatedly
the climate of oppression and narrowing of the space of
fundamental freedoms in his country.
This first Nobel Prize ever awarded to a Congolese has
sparked a wave of joy and national pride in the largest
country in sub-Saharan Africa.
The association GFAIA is happy for the Nobel Peace
Prize 2018 awarded to Dr. Denis Mukwege this Friday,
October 5, 2018 with Nadia Murad and warmly
congratulates him.
Since the introduction of the candidacy, until this
memorable day, nearly 5 years have passed! We would like
to thank Mr André Flahaut, who received us at the time,
accompanied by Dr Denis Mukwege, and who supported
this application on behalf of the Kingdom of Belgium.
Mission accomplished for the GFAIA.
80
Barbara Dietrich and Denis Mukwege
© Diplomatic World

AMONG THE PRESTIGIOUS DECORATIONS THAT ARE:
The Legion of Honour the highest award of the French
Republic
• UN Human Rights prize (New York, December 10,
2008)
• Olof Palme Prize (Sweden, 2008)
• African of the Year (Nigeria, January 2009), awarded
by Daily Trust
• Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur by the French
government (Kinshasa, November 2009) by French
Ambassador Pierre Jacquemot.
• Van Heuven Goedhart-Award (June 2010) from
the Netherlands Refugee Foundation (Stichting
Vluchteling)
• Honorary Doctorate by the faculty of medicine at
Umeå University, (Sweden, June 2010)
• The Wallenberg Medal from the University of Michigan
(October 2010)
• The King Baudouin International Development Prize
(Brussels, May 24, 2011) by the King of Belgium
Albert II.
• Clinton Global Citizen Award for Leadership in Civil
Society (New York, September 22, 2011) by President
Bill Clinton.
• The 2011 Deutscher Medienpreis (German Media
Award) in Baden Baden Germany (February 2012)
• Officier de la Légion d'Honneur Française (Panzi, July 8,
2013) brought to Bukavu by the First Lady of France
Valérie Trierweiler and the Minister of Francophonie
Yamina Benguigui.
• Civil Courage Prize (October 15, 2013)
• Human Rights First Award (August 5, 2013)
• Right Livelihood Award (September 26, 2013);
• "Prize for Conflict Prevention" by the Fondation
Chirac (Paris, October 10, 2013) honored by the
presence of 2 French Presidents Jacques Chirac and
François Hollande
• Honorary degree from Université catholique de
Louvain in Belgium (February 3, 2014) along with
Lawrence Lessig and Jigme Thinley
• The Hillary Clinton Award in Washington DC
(February 26, 2014) at Georgetown University for
Advancing Women in Peace and Security along with
the British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
William Hague
• The Inamori Ethics Prize from the Case Western
Reserve University Inamori Center for Ethics and
Excellence (October 1, 2014)
• Solidarity Prize received from Médecins du Monde
and the Saint-Pierre University Hospital in Brussels
(October 16, 2014)
• The Sakharov Prize for the Freedom of Thought,
received from the European Parliament in Strasbourg
(November 26, 2014)
• Harvard University Honorary degree as Doctor of
Science. Boston, Massachusetts (May 28, 2015)
• Gulbenkian Prize. Lisbon, Portugal (July 16, 2015)
• Women for Women International "Champion for Peace
Award". New York (November 10, 2015)
• Prix Héros pour l'Afrique (Hero for Africa). Brussels,
Belgium (January 18, 2016)
• University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing Renfield
Foundation Award for Global Women’s Health.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (March 24, 2016)
• Fortune Magazine 35 th World Greatest Leader of 2016.
USA (March 2016)
• Four Freedoms Award Laureate for the Freedom
From Want, by the Roosevelt Institute in New York
and Franklin D. Roosevelt Stichting. Middelburg,
Netherlands (April 21, 2016)
• Scandinavian Human Dignity Award Laureate, by the
Scandinavian Human Rights Lawyers & Committee.
Stockholm, Sweden (October 14, 2016)
• Seoul Peace Prize, Seoul, Korea (October 6, 2016)
• Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People (2016)
• University of Edinburgh Honorary Degree of Doctor
of Medicine, Scotland, United Kingdom (December 1,
2017)
• University of Angers (French: Université d'Angers)
Honorary Degree of Doctor of Medicine, Angers,
France (January 23, 2018)
• University of Liège (French: Université de Liège)
Honorary Degree Doctor Honoris Causa Liège,
Belgium (September 20, 2018)
81

RUSSIA
AT THE CENTER OF THE NEW
GLOBAL GEOPOLITICAL MAP
In order to sketch a geopolitical assessment of Russian foreign
policy since the 2000s, the prerequisite is to seek to position
oneself from Russia’s point of view. In geopolitics, this means
trying to understand the issues that affect Russia from its
geographical position, and thus put Russia, the largest country in
the world, at the center of the geopolitical map.
82
We will focus on geopolitical and geostrategic issues although
the economic aspect is equally important. Due to its
geographical position, Russia is a central element of security
in Europe, as well as throughout Eurasia. Its territory is
contiguous with all major crisis zones in the world.
After the end of the Cold War, Russia had to deal with a
deteriorated geopolitical situation. Russia, after the dissolution
of the USSR where it occupied a central position, suffered
a consequent loss of strategic territories. Its territorial
regression brought it back to a situation prior to that of
Catherine II of Russia in the eighteenth century. Part of its
population found itself scattered in new states adjacent to
Russia.
THE REAFFIRMATION OF RUSSIA AS A
GEOPOLITICAL POLE IN A MULTICENTERED
WORLD
Russia had hoped to find a place in the common European
home after the collapse of the USSR, but on an equal footing
with the other European nations. This vision has failed, after
the insistence of EU governments and NATO member states
to “westernize” Russia and only offer it a secondary role in the
Euro-Atlantic area.
NATO enlargement, the Kosovo war and the Color
Revolutions in the countries of the former USSR, in particular
the latest regime change in the Ukraine, have persuaded
Russia that the objective of Western governments is to push
it back to its mainland. The invasion of Iraq, the intervention
in Libya, as well as the attempted regime change in Syria, also
convinced Russians that their security interests are not taken
into account.
The Russian reaction to its marginalization since the fall of
the USSR has manifested in four phases since Vladimir Putin
became Russian President (first term: 31 December 1999 — 26
March 2000 and then until 7 May 2008):
• the fight against the oligarchs starting in the 2000s, with
the iconic step against Mikhail Khodorkovsky, ex-boss of
the Yukos oil group,
• the takeover of Gazprom state-owned company
allowing the Russian State to control its resources and
infrastructure with the gas crisis in 2006 and 2009 with
Ukraine,
• the second Chechnya war in 1999 as President and
Russia-Georgia war in 2008 as Prime Minister under the
presidency of Dimitri Medvedev,
• finally the crisis in the Ukraine in 2014 and the intervention
in Syria under the presidency of Vladimir Putin.
The year 2007 is also that of Russia’s come-back at the
international level. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia
confirmed Russia’s suspension of the implementation of the
Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) signed in
1990 and adapted in 1999, which limited military deployments
on the continent. This was done in response to the American
missile shield project and the unilateral exit of the US from the
ABM treaty in 2002.
On the occasion of his speech at the 43 rd Munich Conference
on October 2nd 2007, Vladimir Putin denounced the extension
of the Atlantic Alliance to Russia’s borders, contrary to the

promises made by the Secretary General of NATO, Manfred
Woerner on May 17 th 1990, who assured that there would be
no NATO extension towards the East, guaranteeing security
to the Soviet Union, although this was not written down in a
treaty.
After the initial disappointment and in response to the various
crises, Russian initiatives such as the intervention in Georgia,
Syria, and Ukraine to regain control of its fate surprised
Westerners.
As Russia’s emblem, the double-headed eagle, suggests,
Russians seek to remain a power pole according to a
multidirectional Eurasian strategy. Their goal is to remain
a vital state in the space previously occupied by the former
USSR for their security and prosperity and to be heard in
Eurasia and globally.
Russia was implicated in the Georgia, Ukraine and Syria
conflicts because its territory is geographically contiguous
with all areas of global tensions. Russia, like any state, seeks to
protect its security and prosperity. Therefore it seeks to defend
its security in its priority areas of interest.
At a global level, Russia is also actively involved in promoting
a multipolar world in the context of globalization which
is more and more becoming a conflict over allocation of
geopolitical spaces.
The aim is above all to challenge the unipolar Euro-Atlantist
project under US leadership. Russia, on the opposite, seeks
to promote a multicentered world so that it has a say in its
priority areas of interest at regional level, in particular. It is
not a question of recreating a power equivalent to the USSR,
nor is it of restoring a bipolar world. Russia has neither the
means nor the ambition for that. It is simply seeking a better
geopolitical balance.
Russia considers that the expansion policy of the Atlantic
Alliance supported by the United States and its allies is
aimed at encircling it. Russia’s geopolitical priority objective
was therefore to loosen its encirclement by the Atlantic
83

84
Alliance. This objective is, at least temporarily, achieved. In
the case of Georgia and Ukraine, their chances of joining
the Atlantic Alliance are in the long term questionable. The
frozen conflicts in Georgia, as well as the recognition of the
independence of Abkhazia and North Ossetia by Russia, but
also the independence of Transnistria in Moldova equally
prevent an extension of NATO.
As far as Ukraine is concerned, it is an identity issue of the
Russian nation because Ukraine was the location of the first
emergence of Russia as a State before the Mongol invasion,
and was later a part of the territory of Tsarist Russia, and
after that, part of the USSR, before its independence after
the dissolution of the USSR. The conflict in Donbass and the
annexation of Crimea by Russia also block the expansion of
NATO.
According to Russia’s point of view, Crimea’s return to Russia
is perceived as legitimate reunification.
From the geostrategic point of view, it allows Russia to secure
a privileged access to the Black Sea with total control of the
port of Sebastopol. The Black Sea is the strategic access route
for Russia to the Mediterranean, and therefore the warm seas.
This port allows Russia to counter its encirclement by the
NATO missile defense system (coupled with that of the United
States) and NATO bases in the Black Sea.
As far as Syria is concerned, Russia made the correct
diagnosis from the start and interpreted Arab revolutions
as a series of geopolitical conflicts that might endanger the
stability not only of Russia but also that of all Eurasia. Russian
intervention helped prevent a regime change in Syria and
avoid a domino effect with a spread of Islamist threat in the
Caucasus and Central Asia, as well as on Russian territory.
At the economic level, on the other hand, Russia’s size is
modest and remains much smaller than that of the European
Union as a whole. Arms expenditure is also well below that of
NATO and the United States in particular. This imposes limits
on the power of Russia, which is often exaggerated.
Russia has thus managed to influence the evolution of world
geopolitics towards a more multicentric world.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has widely been re-elected
in the 2018 elections and this massive plebiscite stresses that
the Russian nation has come together like no other nation in
Europe, which demonstrates a failure of the attempt to divide
Russians by sanctions and isolation policy.
CONSEQUENCES FOR THE
EUROPEAN PROJECT
Russia’s "unilateral" Westernization and the practice of
sanctions to constrain its geostrategic decisions have failed.
The crisis between the EU and Russia is not a sub-element
of the EU’s external relations but is an issue that touches
upon the aims of the European project. The geopolitical
regression of the EU with Brexit, and the EU-Russia crisis are
opportunities to reform the European project.
A rapprochement with Russia would allow Europeans in the
European Union to diversify their alliances, and to promote
a multicentred world. The European project therefore needs
a strong and stable Russia, as a pillar of the multipolar world
in which Europe as a whole will have more weight in the
global geopolitical balance. However, it is illusory to believe
that relations between the EU and Russia can return to the
situation before the Ukrainian crisis, Russia will never accept
its integration into a Euro-Atlantic area as a subordinate
element. It will not abandon its Asian orientation because the
emerging geopolitical center of gravity of the world is Eurasia.
The rapprochement with Russia would also be useful for
the EU in order to be connected to the Chinese Silk Road
project. It would be wise for Europeans to take distance from
the Sino-American tension, whose main stage will remain far
from the most sensitive priority areas for European interests.
A moderating alliance with Russia and a reformed EU would
play the role of a moderating alliance to avoid an American-
Chinese confrontation or condominium. Russia, as well as the
EU have an interest in the stability of its western, eastern and
southern flanks.
Russia serves as a useful balancing power in the context of a
global equilibrium policy. It is also the energy and commercial
hinterland of the European Union. The possibility of a
strategic partnership between the European Union and Russia
must therefore be safeguarded on the basis of a common
belonging to European civilization.
The German and French governments have recently shown
signs of openness. A new European security architecture with
Russia is the goal announced by the French president, while
the German government’s coalition treaty names Europe from
Lisbon to Vladivostok as a political goal. The future will tell if
the opportunity will be seized.
Dr. Pierre-Emmanuel Thomann

WHO STARTED THAT
THREAT OF „WAR“?
Indeed, President of the United States Donald
Trump introduced a completely new way of
diplomacy, very frankly stating his “America First”
doctrine. However, on this sudden and put on hold
for now threat of trade war with the European
Union, EU, is Trump the only one to blame? Who
came up first with the idea of tariffs or similar
obstructions?
It’s especially the big US tech conglomerates like Microsoft,
Apple, Google and Amazon who dominate European IT
and internet markets, making huge profits while paying
almost zero taxes in Europe. Therefore, the idea of a special
VAT, designed for US conglomerates with gross revenues of
over €50 million was born. Well, it’s not a duty, it’s a tax,
however, the result is pretty much the same. It’s not in place
yet, but the idea has been discussed for a while and we can
be sure this was watched very carefully in the US, both by
corporations and authorities.
It makes no difference, that it was not designed as a tariff
and that it is meant to overcome the disadvantages caused
by an unharmonized tax system within the EU. Google, for
instance, has its European headquarter in Ireland where it
is taxed for all its European revenues. It has chosen Ireland
because it had been promised extremely low tax rates. The
formerly poor country draws a huge benefit from it because
Dieter Brockmeyer
of the creation of jobs and infrastructure investments, while
partner countries in the EU are left with nothing.
Moreover, the General Data Protection Regulation has been
installed to put a leech on hungry data collectors from the
US. It increases costs for Facebook and Google for their
European operations, yes, but it also backfires especially
on smaller companies and startups within Europe that are
slowed down in developing market innovations. The new
e-privacy directive expected to be in place next year, is going
to make it worse for both, international companies acting in
the EU and local ones. Big US players can act around this
easily and can count on — more or less open — support from
their government.
From the outside perspective all that matters are authorities
installing obstructions preventing US companies from acting
as freely as before or, at least, that it will be more expensive
for them to do so. Of course, there is a big difference in the
orchestration of the Trump administration. But it is not so
easy to blame only one side for the new direction. The talks
starting now to completely nix tariffs and state subsidies
within the two trade blocks are a step in the right direction.
However, it’s a complicated issue with open ends. Independent
of these talks the EU should solve its internal and structural
problems by reforming the Union, something that’s been
overdue for a while. A harmonized tax system for instance is
hard to accomplish, considering the current state of the union.
However, it would make it easier also to respond to trade war
threats — not only from the Trump administration. This would
take away arguments from those in favor of a trade war which
would consequently harm the entire globe.
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FEMOZA
THE WORLD’S
FREE ZONE ASSOCIATION
LOOKS INTO THE POTENTIAL
OF THE DIGITAL FREE ECONOMIC
ZONE NETWORKS
OBOR — One Belt One Road or China’s new
silk roads can create a global interconnected free
economic trade and manufacturing spaces and a new
network for the sharing economies of tomorrow!
86
In 2013 — China’s President Xi Jinping has launched the
One Belt One Road project — involving 60 countries in
a transcontinental, 1 trillion $ funded project. OBOR
embraces 70% of the world population, 55% of world GDP
and 75% of the world’s energy reserves ! Aim: launching the
maritime and land routes connecting the Asian continent
with Europe.
At the operational level, a financial vehicle — the AIIB —
the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank was launched.
For its communication with the EU — China created its
own political platform CEEC 16+1 comprising of 11 EU
member states and 5 Balkan states. This forum is now a
driving force to expand and finance the Silk Road network
into the EU. Femoza hopes that Europe’s TEN-T trans-
European networks will be integrated in this planetary
vision on communication, manufacturing and logistics.
Femoza is convinced that this new multimodal
infrastructures will revive the idea of a global
interconnected network for free trade and manufacturing
with free economic zones forming its backbone. Some here
in Europe are announcing a new Hanseatic league concept.
TRANSFORMING THE SILK ROADS INTO DIGITAL
HIGHWAYS WILL GIVE A NEW DIMENSION TO
THIS GLOBAL NETWORK OF INTERCONNECTED
FREE ZONES
The construction of cross-border optical cables and other
communications trunk line networks may add an additional
transport modus to these infrastructures.
Today value chains between supply and production; between
manufacturing and distribution to the end-clients; such
chains encounter multiple bottlenecks. These are amongst
others the slow speed at which goods now travel, the custom
clearance inefficiencies and inconsistencies, the costs of
delays caused by labour and logistic delays and finally the
lack of visibility of the status of goods along the transport
corridors.
Through a digital silk road infrastructure including a single
unified customs system and effective methods of tracking
the products on board; the new transport networks could
become intelligent and become part of the integrated
manufacturing and logistics chains.
INDUSTRY & LOGISTICS 4.0 OR THE 4 TH
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION WILL DISRUPT
EVERYTHING ALONG THE OLD VALUE CHAINS
Humanity has encountered 3 industrial revolutions. These
changed the human work component for the production
of goods fundamentally. The first industrial revolution
was the one of steam-powered mechanical manufacturing
facilities that took place by the end of the 18th century.
The general use of electrically-powered mass production

© Femoza
technologies at the beginning of the 20th century, became
the second industrial revolution. A further automation of
manufacturing came through the third industrial revolution
that began around mid-1970s, through the widespread
integration of electronics and information technology (IT)
in factories. In total, these three industrial revolutions took
roughly two centuries to develop.
Now we have entered with digital infrastructures, internet
of things, artificial intelligence, big data and data-analysis,
blockchain, smart contracts into the 4 th industrial
revolution. It will have the biggest disruptive impact on
the old economies ever and that will change the way we
produce, consume and live on our planet.
FEMOZA WANTS TO ACCELERATE THE
AWARENESS AND POTENTIAL OF THIS
4 TH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION
Free Economic zones should transform themselves
into digital free zones that have the state-of-the-art
infrastructures and capacities that are needed to empower
this 4 th industrial revolution in production and logistics.
All of this may solve the old problems like lack of speed
in the warehousing operations, the inconsistent capacity
planning along manufacturing and distribution value chains.
It will allow decentralized and fully customized production
of goods that will be delivered from multiple shared
manufacturing sites directly, on demand, to the end
consumers; these fully integrated value chains will be all
time visible, interconnected and transparent through digital
ledger technologies.
The Free zones should in this way form a global
interconnected space network for free manufacturing and
distribution — with a standard global custom system based
on blockchain and smart contracts.
FEMOZA WILL ANNOUNCE FIRST DIGITAL
SILKROAD PARTNERSHIPS AT THE WORLD
ECONOMIC FORUM TO BE HELD IN OCTOBER
IN GENEVA
The Forum organised by the UN-UNCTAD will take
place from 22 to 26 October 2018, at the Palais des
87

© Femoza
88
Nations in Geneva. FEMOZA is a co-organiser of the
session Special Economic Zones: Opportunities and
Challenges, that will take place on Friday, 26 October
2018. But also some special session on blockchain
transformation will be part of the forum.
(http://worldinvestmentforum.unctad.org)
The 2018 Forum will feature over 50 sessions, including
three summits, five ministerial roundtables, ministersbusiness
executives dialogues, several multi-stakeholder
dialogues on special themes, a variety of parallel events
and award ceremonies. Over 5000 high-level participants,
representing investment-development stakeholders
worldwide will be present. FEMOZA has an observatory
status at UNCTAD.
DIPLOMATIC WORLD’S VISION …
For Diplomatic world the 4 th industrial revolution opens
perspectives for the new Eurasia continent, that extends
from North Sea to Pacific ocean; where peoples and cultures
in the 3 major political jurisdictions the Eurasian Economic
Union, the EU and China live in peace and harmony and
develop numerous synergies between each other.
Through the 4 th industrial revolution a meeting point between
the East (inspired by communist and Confucian thinking)
and the West (socially corrected market economy) can be
created. This will open new windows of opportunities to
work out new visions for the promotion of growth; within
a broadly supported social model and an environmentally
sound platform: a new model for the future of humanity.

Wallpaper, watercolor
© Lieve Van Stappen
89

A DIAMOND SILK ROAD TRAIN FOR
ANTWERP IN 2020 ?
SEPTEMBER 27 TH , 2018, WAS
A SPECIAL DAY IN THE CENTRAL
STATION OF ANTWERP
Three organisations signed a memorandum for
cooperation on the future Diamond Silk Road train
Antwerp-Shanghai.
FEMOZA the World federation for Free Economic Zones
is a non-for profit organisation with its seat in Geneva. The
organisation has an observer statutus at UNCTAD and
UNIDO — two organisations that are part of the United
Nations. Also Diplomatic World was one of the signatories.
Diplomatic world combines diplomacy — journalism with
a strong focus on moving our planet towards more peace,
cooperation and cultural exchange. The third organisation is
the Chinese community of Antwerp, through EFTCC — the
European Federation of Traditional Chinese Culture. Ludo
Van Campenhout — Vice-Mayor of the City of Antwerp
was the guest speaker and underlined the importance for
Antwerp of the project. Antwerp is an open door to the
world and will connect citizens from various countries like
Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and China through the
Diamond Express train. The next Antwerp city Government
90

© Diplomatic World
will hopely take this ambition high on its strategic
international agenda.
WHY ANTWERP CENTRAL STATION ?
The organisers stress that Antwerp Central is today
considered one of the most beautifull stations in the
world. This is confirmed by several international rankings.
The historical monument that was ordered by King
Leopold II has been transformed from a dead-end station
to a through station and that is a real masterpiece of
engineering and architecture. The station is now one
of the most important transitpoints on Europe’s high
speed train network; with fast and easy connections
to Amsterdam - Paris - London and Cologne. This
gives Antwerp Central Stations a trumpcard: its direct
catchment area is nearly 30 mio citizens and can be
compared to Shanghai, Antwerp’s sister city.
In addition Antwerp is the entrance door to the
International Silkroad — connecting the Atlantic and Pacific
Ocean. Every week the Port of Antwerp receives containers
through the maritime silk roads; but also over land
Bloctrains from China arrive in nearly 13 days (compared to
35 days by sea).
But as the China Government policy of One Belt One Road
comes into reality by fast and easy connections on the
ground: new Silk Roads are giving us a brand new feeling
of the one continent on which we live here: EuroAsia: a
conglomerate of peoples, cultures, countries that extends all
the way from the Atlantic till the Pacific ocean. FEMOZA,
Diplomatic World and EFTCC want to invite citizens
all over that one Eurasia continent to meet, to greet, to
exchange views, cultures, education, innovation by travelling
on the planned Antwerp-Shanghai Diamond Silk Road train.
BELGIUM HAS A HISTORICAL TRACK RECORD
ON THE OLD SILK ROAD AND ON THE
TRANSIBERIAN RAILWAY
In 1722 the Antwerp merchant Johan Alexander
van Susteren founded the Oostendse Compagnie. This
company was the emanation of the heroic involvement of
Antwerp on the old Silk Roads. This Antwerp company
was the first one on our European continent to develop
the old historical maritime Silk Road with China. The
company imported at its highlight even more than 58% of
all traded tea from China to Western Europe. A unique
Palace on the Meir was built by van Susteren. The Palace
on the Meir in Antwerp, still exists in its original form and
91

© Diplomatic World
92
was symbolically choosen by the 3 organisations to sign
their memorandum.
Another name to remember is the Belgian banker
Naegelmaeckers who from 1898 till 1917 operated nostalgic
luxury trains. His ‘Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-
Lits” operated the world famous luxury trainhotel on the
Transsiberian Express, bringing passengers from Moscow all
the way to Vladivostok.
RUSSIA IS ALSO TODAY CRUCIAL IN THE
DEVELOPMENT OF THE DIAMOND SILK ROAD
TRAIN ANTWERP-SHANGHAI
The first Diamond Silk Road train will make use of
the historical Trans-Siberian Express. That will make
the train extremely attractive as it will connect citizens
from Berlin, Warsaw, Minsk, Moscow, Yekaterinburg,
Omsk, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Ulan Bator and Beijing. A
fascinating journey on sleeping trains that can be done in
less than a week. The initiators of the project hope that a
dialogue can be started between the Peoples Republic of
China, the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and the
EU to even work out a special single “Silk Road Visum”
dedicated to this train journey.
The chairman of Russian Railways, Oleg Belozerov, and
the general director of China Railway Corp signed on
June 8 this year a Memorandum of Understanding on
the organization of high-speed rail freight transport on
China-Russia-Europe axis.
The ceremony took place in a Beijing-Tianjin high speed
train, where the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, and
President of China, Xi Jinping attended. So Eurasia train
travel will soon be next generation high speed and it is
important that not only goods but also citizens will be able
to use this new super infrastructures.
TECHNICALLY POSSIBLE THROUGH UNIQUE
TALGO TECHNOLOGY FROM SPAIN
China and Europe share the same railway track width —
standard gauge or 1435 mm. But Russia’s railway space
has a broader track width: 1520 mm. Spain has developed
a unique technology whereby trains can continue their
journey over both railway networks. Talgo technology
allows the wheels to glide over their axis and adopt to
different railway gauges. China as well as Russia have today
Talgo trains — and these trains could be used to make the
Antwerp-Shanghai railway line operational.

© Diplomatic World
DIAMOND LABEL FOR ANTWERP-SHANGAI
PASSENGER TRAIN
PUBLIC SENSIBILISATION IN ATTENDANCE OF
THE COMING OF THE FIRST TRAIN
The signing of the Memorandum at the Palace on the Meir
took place in presence of a important diplomatic delegation
from several countries. Moreover the AWDC — Antwerp
World Diamond Centre gave in its speech the full support
to the project. And also the Russian world leading diamond
mining company Alrosa was prominently present in support
of the event. Antwerp has been the heart of diamond
trade worldwide for more than 500 years! 84% of all rough
diamonds and 50% of all cut diamonds find their way to the
city. Shanghai is China’s diamond capital and the sister city
relationship between both cities is therefore a precious one!
HAND IN PIGEON FROM YAN SHUFEN
The Belgian National Railways have authorised the
placement of a unique sculpture of the Sino-Belgian artist
Shufen on the plus 1 platforms of the railway station. That
sculpture is a strong sign for the peace, friendship and
harmony that we want to create on the new EuroAsian
continent. It is a hand of hospitality between the 2 friendship
cities Antwerp and Shanghai and forms an invitation to bring
the dream of the Diamond Silk Road train into reality.
The organisers will look for an international party Silk
Road Party weekend with active participation of the Silk
Road capitals Berlin-Warsaw-Minsk-Moscow and Beijing.
These Silk Road parties in the stations should take place
simultaneously and aired online via internet streaming into
one EurAsia Silk Road Party for its citizens. To go into next
steps the signatories to the Memorandum want to set up an
international Diamond Silk Road foundation.
This project is only possible with people who believe
in disruption, who can think “out of the box”, who are
innovative and most of all who believe in our new continent
EurAsia that extends from Atlantic till Pacific Ocean. These
were the very first words of Freddy Opsomer at the signing
ceremony.
Freddy Opsomer served some years as mediator between
Belgian’s National railway company and the City of
Antwerp.
93

WHEN DIVERSITY FINDS ITS
NATURAL HOME IN ART
New 60-acre redevelopment project,
LABIOMISTA, slated to open in 2019 in Belgium.
Established by artist Koen Vanmechelen,
LABIOMISTA to feature large-scale public park,
research facilities, and the artist’s studio.
Internationally renowned conceptual artist Koen Vanmechelen
is breathing new life into the city of Genk, Belgium — once a
major mining center — with a 60-acre redevelopment project.
Called LABIOMISTA — which means “the mix of life” — the
project will feature an entrance and orientation building
designed by acclaimed Swiss architect Mario Botta; a Research
& Study Forum, located in a newly redesigned 1920s villa;
the Cosmopolitan Culture Park, a sustainably redeveloped
grassland that will serve as home to a wide range of animals
and invite the public to engage with the environment and its
inhabitants; and the artist’s 53,000-square-foot private studio,
also designed by Botta. Each of the project’s components
is inspired by Vanmechelen’s wide-ranging practice, which
is guided by an artistic and scientific engagement with
biocultural diversity and its impact on the creation of more
resilient and sustainable communities. This fall marks a
midway point to the project’s completion, which is slated to
open in June 2019.
LABIOMISTA brings together, at one site, the different
threads that comprise Vanmechelen’s work, while also
creating a new platform for dialogue and innovation. His
practice is best encapsulated in such “living art” initiatives
as the Cosmopolitan Chicken Project (CCP).
94
Interior view, The Battery, LABIOMISTA - Studio Koen Vanmechelen
© Kris Vervaeke

Launched 20 years ago, the CCP is a crossbreeding program
through which the artist naturally breeds chickens from
different countries, diversifying the flock’s gene pool
and in doing so increasing its fertility, immunology, and
aesthetic variety. The project has become a driving force for
Vanmechelen, spurring similar projects around the world —
most recently in Ethiopia — as well as collaborations with
scientists and leaders from a spectrum of fields to examine
the importance of diversity to building resilience, shifting
outlooks on the environment, the relationships between
nature and culture, and community development.
ABOUT KOEN
VANMECHELEN
The selection of the site in Genk also further builds on
these ideas, as LABIOMISTA sits atop a former coal
mine that was later transformed into a now defunct zoo.
Economically and ecologically scarred, the location offers
an ideal opportunity for an intervention that will at once
rehabilitate the natural landscape and stimulate economic
growth in this region. With support from local government
as well as private stakeholders, and in collaboration
with Flanders and Limburg Tourism, LABIOMISTA is
being developed as a public-private partnership between
Vanmechelen and the city of Genk. Discussions are also
already underway for a further development focused on
cultivating locally-sourced dining options in and around
LABIOMISTA, to support further economic and social
growth in the area.
“The examination of the ongoing development of our
societies and cultures feels particularly pressing today.
My vision is that LABIOMISTA will foster discussions
across a wide range of people — from the public to artists
to scholars — about how we can create more diverse,
sustainable, resilient, and engaged communities, and also
about our relationships to the other living creatures with
which we share the earth. It is exciting to bring together the
various aspects of my work into a centralized hub, and to
see what new ideas and projects can be born from it,
in this region and far beyond,” said Vanmechelen. “I’m also
inspired and enthusiastic about the collaboration with the
leadership of the city of Genk, who share my vision for a
new kind of community and have boldly signed on to have
an artist redevelop this vital site and area.”
THE STUDIO (AKA “THE BATTERY”)
The Studio, also known as The Battery, is situated at the
southern end of the site, with proximity to the road and
© Florian Voggeneder
Koen Vanmechelen (b. 1965) is an internationally
renowned conceptual artist based in Belgium. He
employs a diversity of approaches to his crossdisciplinary
practice, from painting and sculpture, to
video and installations, to drawing and glasswork, in
addition to his living art initiatives.
Across the last decade, Vanmechelen has collaborated
with scientists from different disciplines. His research
and work earned him an honorary doctorate from the
University of Hasselt in 2010, and the Golden Nica
Hybrid Art award in 2013. His ongoing investigations,
with the support of project partners, led to the
creation of the Open University of Diversity, which
invites people from different fields of study and
practice to engage in a dialogue and new projects that
examine ideas of diversity.
Vanmechelen has shown in major institutions across the
world, including The National Gallery London, Victoria
and Albert Museum (London), Museum Kunst Palast
(Düsseldorf), Venice Projects (Venice), Muziekgebouw
aan ‘t IJ (Amsterdam), Museum of Art and Design
(New York), Pushkin Museum (Moscow), Serlachius
Museum (Manttä) and across Belgium, including at the
Verbeke Foundation, Watou, Museum M and Z33. In
2015, he participated in the Havana Biennale, where
his Cosmopolitan Chicken Project was responsible for
reintroducing an extinct species of chicken back to Cuba.
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Exterior view, The Looking Glass, The Battery, LABIOMISTA - Studio Koen Vanmechelen
© Philippe van Gelooven
views of the Cosmopolitan Culture Park to the north
and the Research & Study Forum to the west. Inspired
by Vanmechelen’s artworks — which in addition to his
“living art” projects include paintings, drawings, sculpture,
installation, and video works — Botta designed a steel frame
building, clad in black brick, and punctuated by 20-foot-high
windows that draw light deep into the structure’s core. The
Studio has three levels and an open, spacious interior, with
polished concrete floors throughout.
The western end of the building is elevated, creating a series
of open-air spaces punctuated by structural columns. These
spaces — which will be open to the public — showcase some
of Vanmechelen’s 2D and 3D installations and works, and
also feature an enclosure for the Red Jungle Fowl — the
primary progenitor of the domestic chicken. The main level,
which runs the length of the building, includes spaces for
art-making and gathering as well as for rotating displays of
Vanmechelen’s work. The second floor serves primarily as
office and storage spaces, and features a balcony that wraps
the interior perimeter, offering sightlines down onto the art
— and art-making — on the main floor. The eastern end of
the building has a third, ground-floor level storage area.
96
The Studio also features a multi-story greenhouse on its
western side entitled The Looking glass, which houses a
number of bird species, including hornbills, toucans, and
Collective Memory, marble © Koen Vanmechelen, LABIOMISTA
© Philippe van Gelooven

INCUBATED WORLDS, ETHIOPIA
Exterior view, Incubated Worlds, Addis Ababa (ET), 2018 © Koen Vanmechelen
© Goele Schoofs
In April 2018 a unique poultry facility opened in
Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. Incubated Worlds is
an artwork and research center at once, a combined
effort of internationally acclaimed Belgian artist Koen
Vanmechelen and two ILRI livestock geneticists; Tadelle
Dessie and Olivier Hanotte. More than a scientific
facility, Incubated Worlds is about harnessing diversity
to promote new types of unity and harmony. It reveals
art and science as valuable partners in addressing global
challenges of sustainable food systems.
The unique genetic diversity of the Cosmopolitan Chicken
Project is brought to Ethiopia in Incubated Worlds, where
the CCP will be crossed with an Ethiopian-grown chicken
breed, researched and selected by the Ethiopian Institute
of Agricultural Research and ILRI for its productivity and
local preference. The crossbred chicken will be named
the ‘African Ethiopian Planetary Community Chicken’,
“It represents the merger of the global with the local,
the world with the community”, says Vanmechelen,
“This crossbreeding project is part of a quest to balance
diversity with productivity. It is at once art, research and
development project.”
and offers a model for more sustainable and resilient
food systems. ACGG Project Leader, Tadelle Dessie:
‘Incubated Worlds brings diversity and ever-changing
combinations back to Ethiopia, the place where life in
myriad forms began and flourished. It demonstrates to
the world that difference can be a thing of beauty and
something that society needs to survive. Ethiopia, being
one of the world’s most biodiverse countries, is an apt
location for this facility’.
NATIONAL MUSEUM OF ETHIOPIA
Honoring the beauty and value of diversity, Koen
Vanmechelen’s artwork Book of Genome was added to
the collection of the National Museum of Ethiopia. It is
significant that these books find a home in the National
Museum of Ethiopia, being the cradle of civilization and
the home of Lucy; the world’s most well-known fossil
from the early hominids.
Incubated Worlds brings a fresh perspective to the
collaborative ILRI-led African Chicken Genetic Gains
project, which is working to increase the productivity
of smallholder chicken farming in Africa and is
supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Crossbreeding genetically rich and diverse birds with
locally grown chickens that were selected and developed
for productivity, enriches and diversifies genetic lines
Installation view, Genome Books, DE-CODE (video), Incubated Worlds,
Addis Ababa (ET), 2018 © Koen Vanmechelen © Goele Schoofs
97

IT’S ABOUT TIME, SERLACHIUS
MUSEUMS, MANTTÄ, FINLAND
Exhibition view, It's About Time, Serlachius Museums, Manttä (FI), 2018 © Koen Vanmechelen
© Sampo Linkoneva
It’s About Time, Vanmechelen solo exhibition at the
remarkable Serlachius Museums in Finland, offered an
in-depth retrospective overview into the unique territory
Vanmechelen’s art occupies on the edges of art and
nature. It presented striking and monumental artworks
inside the Serlachius main exhibition space, with his
famous breeding program for chickens and pigs outside
across the grounds of the park.
Curator Timo Valjakka; “Key concepts in Vanmechelen’s
art are diversity, fertility, identity, domestication, dedomestication
and human rights. A deeply ethical artist,
his work is concerned about the state of the Earth
and a sustainable future for all species. He seeks both
symbolically and concretely to open perspectives into a
future where people do not exploit nature or each other
but live in a state of balance. As an artist he is motivated
by the desire to change the world, not by the power to
possess it.”
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Mario Botta and Koen Vanmechelen in the architect's studio, Mendrisio (CH), 2014
several varieties of turacos. A large enclosure, positioned
atop the building, also provides a habitat for a pair of
Steller’s Sea Eagles. A glass void in the ceiling at the core of
the building allows for views into the Eagles’ environment.
The design for the 53,000-square-foot Studio is a
direct outgrowth of Botta’s long-standing friendship
with Vanmechelen, and his strong understanding of
Vanmechelen’s vision to unite experiences of nature and
culture. Although primarily not a public facility, visitors to
LABIOMISTA will be able to walk around and through the
open-air spaces and greenhouse, and also get views to the
Eagles housed above.
ENTRANCE (“THE ARK”) AND RESEARCH &
STUDY FORUM (“THE VILLA”)
Visitors will enter LABIOMISTA through an entrance
structure, titled The Ark, located at the southwestern end
of the site, and which is also designed by Botta. A dramatic,
modernist archway of black bricks, steel, and polished
concrete, the structure will include 2,500 square feet of
interior space and serve as a welcome area for visitors,
providing them with information about the overall site
and Vanmechelen’s practice. The Ark will also include
installations and works of art by Vanmechelen, a shop, and
the offices for LABIOMISTA’s site manager.
Interior view, The Battery, LABIOMISTA - Studio Koen Vanmechelen
© Kris Vervaeke
From this entrance, visitors will be directed toward the
Research & Study Forum, where they can learn more about
the activity that takes place at LABIOMISTA. Situated within
a beautifully renovated 1920s villa that originally belonged
to the owner of the coal mine, the Forum will serve as the
home base for the Open University of Diversity, a think tank
99

Exterior view, The Battery, LABIOMISTA - Studio Koen Vanmechelen
© Philippe van Gelooven
100
founded by Vanmechelen in 2011 to explore the intersections
of science and art, particularly as it relates to questions of
diversity, fertility, immunology, resilience, and sustainability.
It will, over time, provide overnight accommodations for
scientists, scholars, and curators, who wish to conduct
research at LABIOMISTA or use its library and archives.
Here, the public can experience installations that provide
further details about the animals and ecosystem developed
in the Cosmopolitan Culture Park, as well as some of the
ongoing scientific inquiries and dialogues that relate to
different aspects of the redevelopment. Visitors can also
view some of the archives on the site’s coal mining history,
the genome data for the Cosmopolitan Chicken Project, and
additional works of art by Vanmechelen.
COSMOPOLITAN CULTURE PARK
The Cosmopolitan Culture Park will be the largest
component of LABIOMISTA, encompassing the majority
of the 60 acres. Animals at the Park will include camels,
dromedaries, ostriches, llamas, emus, nandus, and alpacas.
Together these animals will enable Vanmechelen — and
the scientists and researchers with whom he collaborates
— to pose questions and formulate answers about human
and animal relationships, including issues around how we
broadly view animals, evolution, adaptation, domestication,
and the impact of these ideas on diversity.
Formerly a zoo, the Park is being designed by BURO
Landschap, a Belgian urban planning and technology firm,
in collaboration with Vanmechelen. With the removal of the
enclosures that were once a part of the zoo, the Park will
feature a network of elevated and ground level pedestrian
walkways to establish spaces where the animals, which
will be able to roam freely, can engage safely with human
visitors. By encouraging visitors to explore the Park on foot,
LABIOMISTA will provide an enriching experience with the
Park’s animals, opening a window into their communities
and reinforcing the linkages between all living things.
Located within the Park will be an amphitheater, called Lab
Ovo, designed by the Belgian-Spanish architecture firm Van
Belle & Medina. The amphitheater will provide visitors with
the opportunity to watch art performances and hear talks
by artists or scientists, and also offers a centrally-located,
publicly-accessible space to care for the Park’s many animals.
The Park will include public sculptures created by
Vanmechelen, including his 9.5-meter-high sculpture

Interior view, The Battery, LABIOMISTA - Studio Koen Vanmechelen
© Kris Vervaeke
CosmoGolem. Some of the sculptures will serve as animal
shelters — such as bird houses — as well as landmarks for
visitors. Vanmechelen’s “living art” initiatives will also be
central to the Park, which will include breeding stations
for the Cosmopolitan Chicken Project and Planetary
Community Chicken and serve as a platform for the
exploration of the de-domestication and reintroduction of
certain animals into the wild.
model for public-private partnerships that are built on
collaboration and an openness of vision.
www.koenvanmechelen.be
www.mouth.be
www.labiomista.be
CIVIC PARTNERSHIPS
LABIOMISTA is supported by a partnership with the
city of Genk, which made possible the adaptive reuse of
land and opened the door for the creation of this major
redevelopment project, fully envisioned by an artist.
Building on this groundbreaking relationship, the leadership
team for LABIOMISTA will encourage additional
partnerships with other local and regional entities,
supporting future growth and innovation in the region.
Vanmechelen has already begun to create connections to
adjacent community gardens — managed by local residents
— and will eventually establish a space for food trucks
and other vendors to provide other services to visitors to
LABIOMISTA. These efforts provide a new blueprint and
Installation view, The Looking Glass, LABIOMISTA
Studio Koen Vanmechelen
© Philippe van Gelooven
101

THE LARGEST
PALACE OF JUSTICE
IN THE WORLD IN BRUSSELS
On the occasion of the 150 th anniversary of the
laying of the foundation stone of the Palace of
Justice in Brussels and the 200 th anniversary of the
birth of its architect. The international organisation
Meta-Morphosis & Stockmans Art books wanted
to create a cross-media project to celebrate this
emblematic building and to study the importance of
justice in society.
No other building is a better representative of the Belgian
genius. It is a symbol of the exceptional wealth of the
country during the period of its construction, but above all
it reflects the ambition of a young democracy. The
judicial power does not pretend to be a ‘counterpower’ but
‘another power’ and therefore had to be placed above the
other two powers: legislature and executive power.
Because of its international reputation and the influence it
had on important buildings abroad (Parliament of Buenos
Aires in Argentina, Palace of Justice of Lima in Peru, etc.),
this building, which was until very recently the largest
Palace of Justice in the world, is without a doubt one of
the best motivations for a universal reflection on justice.
Expert figures from all over the world accompany us in this
102
Palace of Justice in Brussels
© Axel Ruhomaully, © Meta-Morphosis

ambitious project with diverse realisations which will bring
together magistrates, politicians, diverse experts, artists,
citizens and future generations.
AN ART AND HISTORY BOOK
For only a beautiful book can pay tribute to the biggest
(and arguably most beautiful) courthouse in the world. The
entire project is brought to a close with the publication of
a beautiful art book in four languages — French, Dutch,
English and Spanish, in which all aspects of the project
are presented as well as a universal reflection on justice,
accompanied by art photographs of different places and
artistic creations.
High magistrates, specialists and international figures are
working on this publication at the moment. They were given
free rein to work on neverbefore-published subjects on the
courthouse, its architecture and history, and ask questions
related to the concept of justice. Themes like ‘Justice and
injustice’, ‘Justice and Human rights’ and ‘Justice and
climate’ will be a part of the reflection. Each of these texts
is intended to celebrate the courthouse for what it is and
for what it represents, but also to use it as a pretext to
let readers ponder the fundamental role a strong justice
system has on a true democracy. The audience is varied,
ranging from the daily occupants of the Palace of Justice, to
students and teachers, patrimony and history enthusiasts,
architects and art aficionados, to leaders and institutional
stakeholders, in Belgium and the rest of the world. An
important number of international figures have already
confirmed their participation to the book including Hubert
Reeves — astrophysicist, Princess Esmeralda of Belgium,
Abdoulaye Fadiga — the four times Muay Thai world
champion, Michel Tognini — French astronaut, former Head
of the European Astronaut Centre of the European Space
Agency and many other surprising contributors.
Meta-Morphosis’s strength lies in the ability to balance
these complex subjects and render them intelligible and
appealing, while Stockmans Art Books is proficient
in translating this vision into a fitting physical form.
The contents of this book will therefore be both
understandable and of great quality. For that reason certain
subjects developed by specialists are perfect for artistic
collaborations. The goal is to illustrate the reflections in a
different way and to look at them from a different viewpoint,
but also to make them more appealing and understandable
to a younger audience. Therefore Belgian and international
Palace of Justice in Brussels © Axel Ruhomaully, © Meta-Morphosis
artists are creating in the name of justice. Their involvement
will sensitize an ever-growing audience and broaden the
perspectives of the chosen subjects.
THE MENU OF 1903
Reinterpretation of a mythical menu during an unforgettable
night. The menu of a dinner, organized by the Conference
of the Young Bar on the occasion of the closing of the
Exhibition of Popular Tradition on 25 April 1903, will be
reinterpreted by a chef during an unforgettable evening to
celebrate the book publication and the end of the project.
During the event, the art pieces created for the project will
be auctioned.
CULTURAL MEDIATION
Meta-Morphosis makes it a point to include the younger
generations. By mediating in issues involving heritage
they have assembled the knowhow to reconnect a younger
audience to its history. From heritage to philosophy, Meta-
Morphosis suggests to question all facets of the courthouse.
From knowledge about the building, the context of its
103

creation and the reasons for the extravagant architecture, to
the concept of justice itself. What is justice and the justice
system, what does it serve and how is it applied in Belgium?
And elsewhere? And even more related questions like: What
is injustice? How important is the principle of equality for
the law? How do we attain it? What is the function of the
justice system in social networks? Several cultural
mediation projects revolving around these themes are
organized in collaboration with organisations in the
‘Marollen’ neighbourhood and the schools in Brussels.
DRESSING UP THE FAÇADE
With permission of the Buildings Agency, the corrugated
wall panels will be decorated with photographs, drawings,
paintings and archive documents. These wall panels protect
the basis of the scaffolding of the Palace of Justice’s main
façade. The images are all chosen as a part of the memory
preservation project of the Palace of Justice. They are
commercialized to help finance this ambitious project.
Starting from now, as the first three panels have already
been installed in the beginning of October and the next ones
will be installed in the coming weeks.
SUPPORTING COMITÉ
In parallel to these events and realizations, Meta-Morphosis
set up a supporting comité that brings together leading
figures, key players in the various fields that contribute to
the dynamics of Brussels and beyond, through the will to
highlight this incredible building and preserve its memory.
Patrons to support the project:
Jean-Pierre Buyle — Geoffroy Coomans De Brachene —
Alain Courtois — Luc Deleuze — Emmanuel Cornu — Francis
Delperée — Bernard de Mérode — Charles-Louis de Mérode
— Fabienne Delvigne — Philippe Delusinne — Marc Eyskens
— Geoffroy Generet — Hervé Gerard — Albert Giugiu —
Sophie Jekeleer — Patrice Le Hodey — Françoise Tulkens —
Guy Van Wassenhove — Edouard Vermeulen — Pascal Vrebos
You can follow the project’s progress throughout the coming
year on the site:
Palace of Justice in Brussels
www.courthouse.brussels — www.palaisdejustice.brussels
www.justitiepaleis.brussels — www.justizpalast.brussels
Stockmans Art Books www.stockmans.be
All images pages 105 - 112 of the Palace of Justice in Brussels
© Axel Ruhomaully, © Meta-Morphosis
© Axel Ruhomaully
META-MORPHOSIS
WHEN HERITAGE PRESERVATION BECOMES AN ART
104
Meta-Morphosis is 1) a non-profit international
organization, and 2) a group of commercial companies
that work together on the themes of art, culture and
heritage. In 3 years, through 25 projects over 15
countries, Meta-Morphosis has developed a unique and
universal expertise recognized by most international
institutions. Invited each year by Unesco to the World
Congress Forum; Official partner of Google Art &
Culture; Involved in most events linked to heritage
preservation. They use heritage to reveal and enhance
invisible ties that exist between countries, institutions,
businesses and people. In new artistic forms, we feature
memories, testimonies, emotions of a place,
a talent, a challenge, a story to encourage transmission,
to facilitate intergenerational and intercultural dialogue,
to refocus on human values.
www.meta-morphosis.org

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112

DIPLOMATIC WORLD
GLOBAL ART FORUM
LIEVE VAN STAPPEN
DEAR AGATHE, AGATHE DEAR, ...
My silences had not protected me. Your silence will not protect you. But for every real word spoken, for every attempt I had ever made to
speak those truths for which I am still seeking, I had made contact with other women while we examined the words to fit in a world in
which we all believed, bridging our differences.
― Audre Lorde, The Cancer Journals
The diagnosis of ‘cancer’ is overwhelming. Suddenly, you are a foundling in the world of the sick, a ‘patient’ with an unclear future.
Everything else comes to a stand still, because surviving is the absolute priority. Reinventing yourself implies failure, but one must try
again, and explore until new and unexpected perspectives emerge.
The exhibition Dear Agathe, Agathe dear… is a kaleidoscopic ‘work in progress’, a multimedia project inspired by complex
experiences. It shows the scarred body, challenges its prevailing codes and explores its historical, sociopolitical context. The artworks
presented in “Dear Agathe, Agathe dear” … join a still young tradition in which mostly female artists embrace their vulnerability, and
despite their insecurity, draw strength to show themselves… These haunting images are hard to forget, acknowledging others’ misery.
The performance Dear Agathe, Agathe dear… is also a work in progress. Focussing the spotlight on what is concealed, visitors
encounter a gently swelling polyphonic choir that embraces, understands, heals, and above all, celebrates life.
The words spoken by my oncologist echoed in my brain.
My chemo could affect my cognitive skills. He added that my
artistic skills could be at risk too. I must have immediately
repressed this message for this was the very last thing that
I was willing to put at stake. Yet, more than anything, I wanted
to live. Therefore, I immediately forgot his words until a friend
reminded me later of my concerns on this topic. I decided to
do whatever it took to reinvent myself again. I even wanted to
become my better self. I chose not to have a reconstruction
following my double mastectomy. I would rather get a tattoo.
Every day I selected a rose in the garden and painted it using
watercolours. This demands concentration and carefulness. One
has to be alert because water paint flows wherever it chooses. It
can’t be erased. While painting I slipped into a flow, oblivious
of time and space: a kind of instant mindfulness. A flower is a
living being. You can’t afford to skip a day if you want to paint
the entire cycle from blooming to withering. Each time the
roses surprised me. The more I studied them, the more complex
and ingenious they seemed. More than two years later I had
painted enough roses to make a selection. I decided to postpone
the tattoo for the time being. I’d rather try making an animation
first. The first traces of a wild rose were found in a fossil dated
40 million years ago. The first cancer, recently discovered, grew
in the foot bone of a child around about 1,7 million years ago.
Roses will continue to bloom long after cancer is largely under
control, possibly within ten years.
This flower has been cultivated for over 4000 years. In ancient
times, physicians granted therapeutic qualities to rose juice
and rose water. Hildegard von Bingen recommended rose oil
to massage painful joints and cold feet. Moreover, she knew:
rose fragrance rejoices. In Catholic iconography the five rose
petals symbolize Christ’s wounds on the cross, the red rose
itself representing his blood. Red roses are often tattooed over
the scarred wounds left by mastectomies. Her history resonates
and gives meaning to bodies that have suffered, healed and
survived. Her damaged skin becomes a palimpsest. When we
first looked at the moving images of the animation created
from watercolours, we were perplexed. Indeed, we discovered
a rose blooming and withering, but it could just as easily be
interpreted as a cancer cell. When we placed the animated roses
next to one another in a gridded format, a ‘classic’ wallpaper
was born, albeit from living roses. Like whirling snowflakes
and the waves of the sea, these roses are fractals. Engaging
these self-repeating images requires no intellectual effort on
the viewers’ part. It keeps their mind focused and anchors their
wandering thoughts. It thus entices contemplation and distracts
from one’s immediate environment.
The roses wallpaper is de–stressing. It has a soothing
influence on the troubled, anxious brain. The images inspire
conversations with fellow spectators. Ideally, I would like to
project this animation in a hospital, preferably on the wall in
the waiting room of an oncology department.
Lieve Van Stappen, 2017
Page 21
Page 89
Wallpaper, detail, watercolor
Wallpaper, watercolor
Page 131 Wallpaper, watercolor
Page 139 Wallpaper, watercolor
Page 153 If you have a cuting in your hand, 2017, Watercolor
Page 169 Wallpaper, detail, watercolor
www.lievevanstappen.com
113

Super Etna Wines of Vini Franchetti
In the previous edition of Diplomatic World, we covered the life story of Andrea Franchetti,
In the previous edition of Diplomatic World, we covered the life story of Andrea Franchetti,
one of Italy’s most fascinating, poetic and contrarian winemakers.
one of Italy’s most fascinating, poetic and contrarian winemakers.
We now invite you to take a closer look to his mesmerising vinyards of Passopisciaro
We now invite you to take closer look to his mesmerising vinyards of Passopisciaro
on the north face of Mount Etna.
on the north face of Mount Etna.
ANDREA FRANCHETTI, ONE OF ITALY’S MOST
ANDREA FRANCHETTI, ONE OF ITALY’S MOST
FASCINATING WINE MAKERS
FASCINATING WINE MAKERS
Andrea Franchetti is one of Italy’s most fascinating winemakers,
Andrea Franchetti is one of Italy’s most fascinating winemakers,
bringing his intuitive and poetic worldview to the way he makes his
bringing his intuitive and poetic worldview to the way he makes his
wines. When he came to the Etna for the first time in the winter
wines. When he came to the Etna for the first time in the winter
of 2000, he was touched by the misery of blackened streets and
of 2000, he was touched by the misery of blackened streets and
ashen churches in large old towns. “It seemed crazy to restore
ashen churches in large old towns. “It seemed crazy to restore
vineyards so high up the mountain – above, it was erupting – but I
vineyards so high up the mountain above, it was erupting but liked that they were planted so high.” Andrea says. “Volcanoes are
liked that they were planted so high.” Andrea says. “Volcanoes are
gloomy places, and when I arrived, Mt. Etna was even gloomier
gloomy places, and when arrived, Mt. Etna was even gloomier
because it was an abandoned volcano. Wineries lay collapsed all
because it was an abandoned volcano. Wineries lay collapsed all
over its slopes; stonewalled terraces disappeared everywhere up the
over its slopes; stonewalled terraces disappeared everywhere up the
mountain in the bushes.”
mountain in the bushes.”
At the top of the steep Passopisciaro property looms a hump of
At the top of the steep Passopisciaro property looms hump of
black gravel. It’s where the lava spill from a big eruption in 1947
black gravel. It’s where the lava spill from big eruption in 1947
had stopped, caking up just before it could submerge whole terraces
had stopped, caking up just before it could submerge whole terraces
below it, vines, walls, and buildings: on Etna you can lose it all.
below it, vines, walls, and buildings: on Etna you can lose it all.
Here, it’s always very cold at night, even in August. The first
Here, it’s always very cold at night, even in August. The first
wine Andrea Franchetti made was pale and meager, and he was
wine Andrea Franchetti made was pale and meager, and he was
discouraged. He planted other grapes; whatever is planted there
discouraged. He planted other grapes; whatever is planted there
the wine always tastes of citrus and camphor, without that generous
the wine always tastes of citrus and camphor, without that generous
body that you like earth to lend right away to a wine.
body that you like earth to lend right away to wine.
There’s no mold, no moss; the ground sparkles black like the night;
There’s no mold, no moss; the ground sparkles black like the night;
the wine slowly becomes very elegant and strange. During the day
the wine slowly becomes very elegant and strange. During the day
a soft light penetrates everything and then there are starry nights;
soft light penetrates everything and then there are starry nights;
Etna has enormous poetry. Making wine, you have access to it.
Etna has enormous poetry. Making wine, you have access to it.
There isn’t Mother Nature here. You are conducting your viticulture
There isn’t Mother Nature here. You are conducting your viticulture
SIX DIFFERENT HIGHTS, SIX BOTTLINGS OF NERELLO
SIX DIFFERENT HIGHTS, SIX BOTTLINGS OF NERELLO
MASCALESE
MASCALESE
Passopisciaro produces six different bottlings of nerello mascalese,
Passopisciaro produces six different bottlings of nerello mascalese,
the native grape to Mt. Etna, in order to showcase the profound
the native grape to Mt. Etna, in order to showcase the profound
differences in the terroir – lava flow, aspect, and altitude – of the
differences in the terroir lava flow, aspect, and altitude of the
various Contrade that Andrea Franchetti works with. The vines
various Contrade that Andrea Franchetti works with. The vines
are all between 70-100 years old, and the nerello harvest typically
are all between 70-100 years old, and the nerello harvest typically
occurs at the end of October/early November. The wines undergo
occurs at the end of October/early November. The wines undergo
fermentation in steel vats, followed by malolactic and 18 months
fermentation in steel vats, followed by malolactic and 18 months
aging in large neutral oak barrels; this minimal intervention approach
aging in large neutral oak barrels; this minimal intervention approach
to winemaking allows the differences in terroir to shine. Franchetti
to winemaking allows the differences in terroir to shine. Franchetti
started bottling the contrada wines separately in 2008, with a label
started bottling the contrada wines separately in 2008, with label
change in 2009. We present you 3 of the 5 contrade, all available at
change in 2009. We present you of the contrade, all available at
Boutique Barrique, Belgian distributor af Vini Franchetti.
Boutique Barrique, Belgian distributor af Vini Franchetti.
Contrada Rampante
Contrada Rampante
(Contrada R) is the highest cru at
(Contrada R) is the highest cru at
1,000 m (3,330 ft) above sea level. At
1,000 (3,330 ft) above sea level. At
the highest confines of viticulture on
the highest confines of viticulture on
the northern side of Etna, Rampante
the northern side of Etna, Rampante
is ancient contrada, producing
is ancient contrada, producing
one of the volcano’s finest, most
one of the volcano’s finest, most
aromatic wines because of the sandy
aromatic wines because of the sandy
character that the lava has acquired.
character that the lava has acquired.
Due to the altitude, it is typically
Due to the altitude, it is typically
the last contrada to ripen. Andrea
the last contrada to ripen. Andrea
Franchetti owns and cultivates 1.4
Franchetti owns and cultivates 1.4

VINI FRANCHETTI
TENUTA DI TRINORO - PASSOPISCIARO
VINI FRANCHETTI
International Ratings for the superb 2015 vintage
TENUTA DI TRINORO - PASSOPISCIARO
International Ratings for the superb 2015 vintage
TENUTA DU TRINORO
Tenuta di Trinoro 2015
Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate, 95 points: “The gorgeous 2015
Tenuta di Trinoro pours into the glass with inky dark richness that
is beautiful to behold. This wine is made primarily with Cabernet
Franc but has some Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot mixed in
as well. Although Andrea Franchetti had retreated from his trademark
overripe style in recent years, you get a nostalgic glimpse of it
here. The warm growing season has conspired to create a rich and
textured red wine with aromas of blackberry preserves, cherry confit
and subtle baking spice. This is a charming and exuberant creation
that is open and loud even at this very young stage in its long and
promising lifespan. (Drinking window: 2019 – 2035)”
TENUTA DU TRINORO
Tenuta di Trinoro 2015
Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate, 95 points: “The gorgeous 2015
Tenuta di Trinoro pours into the glass with inky dark richness that
is beautiful to behold. This wine is made primarily with Cabernet
Franc but has some Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot mixed in
as well. Although Andrea Franchetti had retreated from his trademark
overripe style in recent years, you get a nostalgic glimpse of it
here. The warm growing season has conspired to create a rich and
textured red wine with aromas of blackberry preserves, cherry confit
and subtle baking spice. This is a charming and exuberant creation
that is open and loud even at this very young stage in its long and
promising lifespan. (Drinking window: 2019 – 2035)”
Score: 92
Score: 92
Tasting Note: Pretty rose petal, graphite and juicy cherry flavors
Tasting Note: Pretty rose petal, graphite and juicy cherry flavors are
TENUTA DU TRINORO
framed by light, dusty tannins and bright acidity in this charmin
TENUTA DU TRINORO
framed by light, dusty tannins and bright acidity in this charming,
Toscana Palazzi 2015
light- to medium-bodied light- red, ending to medium-bodied with a mineral-tinged red, ending finish. with a mineral-tinged finis
Toscana Palazzi 2015
Drink now through 2025. Drink 283 cases now made. through 2025. 283 cases made.
Score: 96Score: 96
-Wine Spectator April 2018 -Wine Spectator April 2018
Contrada Tasting Note:
Contrada Tasting Guardiola Immediately Note: Immediately alluring aromas alluring of ripe black aromas currant of ripe and
Guardiola
black currant Contrada and Chiappemacine
Contrada Contrada Chiappemacine
blackberry Contrada
Guardiola
waft from the
blackberry Guardiola
glass, frames by spicy oak. Picks up earth, Contrada Chiappemacine
waft from the glass, frames by spicy oak. Picks up earth, Contrada Chiappemacine
(Contrada leather and G)
(Contrada
tar notes, is an layered ancient
leather and G) tar notes, is
through domain
an layered ancient
the long
through domain
finish. Balanced and (Contrada C) is a small domain at
(Contrada G) is ancient domain
(Contrada G) is an ancient domain
the long finish. Balanced (Contrada and C) is small (Contrada domain C) at is a small domain at
between
long. Merlot.
800
Best
long.
and
from
Merlot.
1,000
2020
Best
m
through
(2,600
from 2020
to
2035. 615 cases made.
through 2035. 615 cases made.
550 m (1,000 ft) above (Contrada sea level, C) is small domain at
between -Wine Spectator between 800 and Dec 1,000 800 2017 and (2,600 1,000 to m (2,600 to
550 PASSOPISCIARO
(1,000 ft) above 550 m sea (1,000 level, ft) above sea level,
3,300 ft) between above -Wine sea Spectator 800 level, and on Dec the 1,000 2017 edge
(2,600 to
Andrea’s lowest site 550 for PASSOPISCIARO
a (1,000 single ft) above sea level,
3,300 ft) above sea level, on the edge
Andrea’s
3,300 ft) above sea level, on the edge
Terre Siciliane lowest Contrada site for
Andrea’s S 2015 single
of the lava 3,300 flow ft) from above Etna’s sea level, 1947 on the edge
vineyard cru. The Andrea’s site
Terre
produces
lowest site for a single
of the lava flow from Etna’s 1947
vineyard Score: 92cru. The site produces Siciliane lowest Contrada site for S 2015 single
eruption. of It the produces lava flow a deep from and Etna’s 1947
a more Tasting full-bodied, Note: Medicinal vineyard rounder herb and cru. The site produces
of the lava flow from Etna’s 1947
vineyard Score: 92 style spice notes form a fragrant thread,
eruption.
TENUTA DU
It
TRINORO
produces deep and
more unwinding full-bodied, through this rounder grippy, medium-bodied style cru. The red, site which produces offers
complex eruption. wine with It a rich produces taste of a deep and
because lively acidity it lies and on flavors the a last more Tasting of mulled outreach full-bodied, Note: Medicinal rounder herb and style spice notes form a fragrant th
complex
Toscana eruption. wine
TENUTA Campo
with
di DU Magnacosta It rich
TRINORO
produces taste
2015
of
deep and
because it lies on the last more outreach cherry and mineral that linger on
unwinding full-bodied, through this rounder grippy, medium-bodied style
red fruit.
red, which offer
Score: 95 complex
Andrea Franchetti
wine with
makes
a rich taste of
of Mount the finish. Etna’s Drink now lava; through
because
beneath 2028.
complex lively acidity it
the 163 cases made.
red fruit. Andrea Franchetti makes
of Mount -Wine Spectator Etna’s April lava; 2018 beneath the lies and on flavors the last of mulled outreach cherry and mineral that linge
this Toscana
wine
Campo
with
di Magnacosta rich taste
2015
of
because it lies on the last outreach
Tasting wine Note: from A a dense careful profile selection emerges of as this red goes from cherry thinner strata of lava lies
red fruit. Andrea Franchetti makes
of Mount the a limestone
this wine from careful selection of
thinner strata of lava lies limestone finish. Etna’s Drink now lava; through beneath 2028. the 163 cases made.
and black red currant
Score: fruit. fruit
95 Andrea to iron, cedar, Franchetti earth and spicy makes oak flavors.
some of the older nerello mascalese
bed to which the vines of Mount -Wine penetrate. Spectator Etna’s April lava; 2018 beneath the
some Muscular of tannins guard the lingering, persistent finish. Youthful and
this
the older
Tasting wine
nerello
Note: from A a
mascalese
dense careful profile selection emerges of
bed to which the vines
as this red goes from cherry thinner
penetrate.
strata of lava lies a limestone
vines, exuberant. which this Cabernet wine he from Franc. started Best careful bottling from 2021 selection through 2033. of 415 cases He owns 1.2 hectares
vines,
thinner of vines strata in of lava lies limestone
made. -Wine
which and black currant fruit to iron, cedar, earth and spicy oak flavors.
some
Spectator
he started
of the
Dec
older
2017bottling
He owns 1.2 hectares of vines in
separately nerello mascalese
PASSOPISCIARO bed to which the vines penetrate.
separately some Muscular beginning
beginning of the tannins older 2011.
2011. guard nerello the lingering, mascalese persistent finish. Youthful this contrada.
this and bed to which the vines penetrate.
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17/10/2018 11:19
WEBSHOP
WEBSHOP

THE CURE FOR PANCREATIC
CANCER MIGHT VERY WELL
BE ON THE VERGE OF DISCOVERY
-PART II -
This was the title of the special on Pancreatic Cancer in
54, the “Autumn 2017” edition of Diplomatic World.
We are not there yet but we have lots of good news to
bring.
PREVENTION
There is no sure way to prevent pancreatic cancer. Some
risk factors such as age, gender, race, and family history
can’t be controlled. But there are things you can do that
might lower your risk. The same counts for all cancers,
even all diseases: healthy living.
Smoking is the most important risk factor! Do NOT smoke!
You will lower the risk if you quit smoking.
Maintain a healthy weight and avoid processed foods.
Obesity is the second important risk factor! Eat lots of fruits
and vegetables, whole grain bread and pastas and include
regular exercise in your daily routine. Some claim alcohol
should be banned but limited use, in time and portions,
is a logic directive. However, if there is a family history
of pancreatic cancer or multiple cancers, your doctor will
advise more targeted tests. The cause of most pancreatic
cancer cases is unknown, but research studies have
identified risk factors that may increase the likelihood that
someone will develop pancreatic cancer.
116
© stemcellthailand.org

© medscape.com
RISK FACTORS YOU CAN CHANGE
RISK FACTORS YOU CAN NOT CHANGE
• Smoking: people who smoke cigarettes are two times
more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than people
who have never smoked.
• Obesity: obese people have a 20 percent increased risk
of developing pancreatic cancer when compared with
people who are of normal weight.
• Diabetes: pancreatic cancer is more likely to occur in
people who have long-standing diabetes (more than 5
years). This can also be a symptom.
• Pancreatitis (Chronic and Hereditary):
chronic pancreatitis indicates an increased risk of
developing pancreatic cancer. It’s even higher in
individuals with hereditary pancreatitis
• Diet and exercise: healthy eating and regular exercise are
vital to promote healthy living
• Family History of Pancreatic Cancer: if a person’s
mother, father, sibling or child had pancreatic cancer,
then that person’s risk for developing the disease
increases by 2 to 3 times.
• Family History of Other Cancers risk of pancreatic
cancer increases if there is a history of familial ovarian,
breast, or colon cancer, hereditary pancreatitis or
familial melanoma.
• Race (Ethnicity): African Americans and Ashkenazi
Jews have a higher incidence of pancreatic cancer
when compared with individuals of Asian, Hispanic or
Caucasian descent.
• Age: the chance of developing pancreatic cancer
increases with age. Most people diagnosed with
pancreatic cancer are over the age of 60.
117

118 © Pancreatic Cancer Action

© Pancreatic Cancer Action
“In late 2007, I noticed that I was feeling tired all the time
and had lost my appetite. I ignored these symptoms. I was a
practicing attorney and I assumed that I was feeling pressure as
I prepared for a trial scheduled for late January 2008.
Then I noticed that my urine started to become dark. It became
progressively darker, but I also ignored this.
Then I became jaundiced and started to itch all over my body.
My wife insisted that I should go immediately to the hospital.
An ultrasound showed that there was blockage in my bile duct,
which was causing the jaundice and itching. I was given an
endoscopy procedure the next day, during which a shunt was
inserted in the bile duct to release the blockage. It was after this
procedure and a CT scan that I was told that I probably had
pancreatic cancer and was scheduled to meet with a surgeon.
I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in early January 2008.”
EARLY DETECTION
The cause of pancreatic cancer is not known but there are
many signs and symptoms that we should pay attention
to. Anyone of these symptoms can be an indication of
something else but please take note and contact your doctor
to discuss it if you feel something is not right.
• ‘painless jaundice’ a yellowing of the skin and the white
of the eyes, dark colored urine and general itching of
the skin. All could be related to bile duct obstruction.
• ‘weight loss’ which is significant and unexplained
(you’re not on a diet), sometimes even dramatic
• ‘abdominal pain’ which is new-onset and significant.
Since the pancreas is located behind the stomach, the
pain will radiate from the stomach right to the back.
• ‘diabetes’ which is new-onset and not associated with
weight gain — a helpful hint your family doctor will
notice
• ‘indigestion’ sometimes vague or abdominal discomfort
and often not responding to prescribed medication
• ‘loss of appetite’ or pain with eating, nausea or
vomiting
• ‘bowel movements’ that change, fatty stools that are
often pale.
119

© Digestive and Obesity Synergy Centre Saba - Docs
120
Not everyone will experience all these symptoms and the
symptoms will also differ according to the location of the
tumor. All of these symptoms can also have other causes,
but it is important to have them checked by a doctor.
MORE RESEARCH
On October 10 th , the European Parliament by Pavel Poc
MEP, hosted a meeting titled “Putting Pancreatic Cancer on
the map — what we have and what we need”.
The event brought together stakeholders from all over
Europe with a common interest and willingness to improve
policies for people with pancreatic cancer.
Worryingly, as the incidence of pancreatic cancer increases
with age, it is expected to become even more prevalent in the
coming decades as the European population ages. Despite
not being the most prevalent cancer, pancreatic cancer is
on the way to becoming the second cancer killer in the near
term. With this event, the objective will be to present the
work undertaken by Pancreatic Cancer Europe (PCE) and
United European Gastroenterology (UEG) to address the
inequalities in pancreatic cancer diagnosis and care across
Europe. Inequalities are deep across Europe: incidence
ranges from 7.4 (ASR) in Sweden to 17.8 (ASR) in Czech

PANCREATIC CANCER
Pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadliest
cancers since it usually causes no symptoms early
on leading to an advanced form of the disease by
the time it gets diagnosed
Pancreas head Body Tail
Bile duct
SYMPTOMS
• Jaundice
• Upper abdominal pain that
radiates to the back
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Depression
The pancreas, a crucial part of
the digestive system, secretes hormones
like insulin, and produces enzymes
needed for food digestion
Pancreatic duct
Cancerous tissue*
Sphincter of Oddi
Duodenum
(small intestine)
* Artist's impression of common tumour positions
RISK FACTORS
• Smoking
• Obesity
• Diets low in vegetables and
fruis, and high in red meat
• Family history of chronic
inflammation of the pancreas
• Diabetes
• Older age
TREATMENT
• Depending on the stage of
cancer, a surgical removal
is done to remove parts of
the pancreas affected by the
tumour. This can extend a
patient's life a few years
• Where surgery is not possible,
chemotherapy and radiation
therapy is used to improve a
patient's quality of life.
PREVALENCE
• The American Cancer Society
says the 5-year survival rate
for patiens is only about 5%.
Most patients die withing six
months.
• Diagnosed in 230.000 people
across the world, with 37.000
cases in the United States
annually.
© Cambridge Research Institute, Cancer Research UK
121

Republic; 5-year survival rates fluctuate between 0.5%
for Slovenia and 9% for Sweden, while the median 5-year
survival rate across Europe is only 3%. The event featured
presentations by key pancreatic cancer experts and patient
advocates, jointly fighting to limit and defeat this disease.
Dr Lydia Makaroff, European Cancer Patients Coalition
(ECPC) presented the heatmap showing a small
improvement of participating European countries in the
fight against Pancreatic Cancer.
Professor Matthias Löhr (UEG) addressed barriers in
diagnostics. There is no mass screening test for pancreatic
cancer today. People with a family history of cancer must be
MRI tested.
Miroslav Zavoral, Military University Hospital Prague stated
that pancreatic cancer is a disease, not only a local tumor.
Early diagnosis should be the task of the general practitioner
and the fact is that we must provide them with more
information and improve awareness! Diabetes T3 should be
investigated more profoundly, not only diabetes T2.
Ali Stunt, founder and CEO of Pancreatic Cancer Action
UK presented the "Inequality report".
Mariella De Bausset, Sec. Gen. of the Fondation A.R.CA.D.
(France) had some very interesting and necessary points of
action to offer on national best practices.
‘Sign & Symptoms’ posters are available in many European
languages and we have to make that known to all concerned,
mostly the general practitioners and associations.
A survey in France showed the following:
• patients did not know the signs & symptoms
• general practitioners minimized the symptoms
• no “urgent” pancreas protocol exists, we should have
quality care in less than 14 days!
• globally some 50 drugs are being developed, 41% by US
companies but only 5% by EU companies
Advocating for a screening program in the EU and more
specific in Eastern Europe MEP Marian-Jean Marinescu
(EPP, Romania) pledged his undivided attention and efforts
in supporting all well-grounded projects regarding the early
detection of pancreatic cancer.
MORE THERAPY
“Research must concentrate more on pancreatic cancer
BUT there are not enough tumour samples and not enough
researchers! No European bank of tumour and/or blood samples,
accessible to all researchers in Europe exists today”, MEP.
Lieve Wierinck promised to look into this urgent matter.
How to make the field more attractive? Not only regarding
treatment but also regarding early detection by identifying
asymptomatic factors. Epidemiology data needs to be
available in large numbers to be able to have early detection
signals. Without these resources, without all the data, no
biomatter study can be done.
PREVENTION OF
PANCRATIC CANCER
• Pancreatic cancer is one of the more
stubborn cancers to diagnose and
treat. Early detection is rare, thus
treatment is limited. Unfortunately,
there are no medically backed
methods of preventing pancreatic
cancer. However, avoiding the risk
factors for it is the best defense we
have.
• Do Not Smoke
122
• Healthy Diet and Exercise

PANCREATIC CANCER TREATMENT
• Localized surgery and
post-op radiation and/or
chemotherapy
Before surgery
After surgery
• Local chemotherapy +
radiation
• Pancreatic Enzyme
therapy
© All to Health/Living Well
We are a large group of advocates and form a fierce team of
fighters. We will make noise until things change for the better
for all cancer patients. The excuse that pancreatic cancer
does not claim enough victims or that the survival rate is
too low to spend research time and money on finding a cure,
has been used for too long now. We want people to know
that a pancreatic cancer diagnosis is not an immediate death
sentence. Too many patients already are testimony to this.
We will spread the word: know the signs and symptoms, act
accordingly and consult your doctor. Early detection is key!
PANCREATIC CANCER RESEARCH FUND
TISSUE BANK
oncologists, researchers and database experts to co-ordinate
a national effort to improve survival for pancreatic cancer
patients. It is the first of its kind in the world.
“This may well be the most important development in
resourcing UK pancreatic cancer research in a generation”
Professor Nick Lemoine, Director of Barts Cancer Institute,
QMUL
“The Tissue Bank is a collaboration between six UK hospitals
that are renowned for their excellence in treating pancreatic
cancer patients - and we're already in discussion with more
hospitals about joining us.”
The Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund Tissue Bank is a
national — and ultimately international — resource that will
help develop new treatments and bring these to patients
much faster. It brings together surgeons, pathologists,
You can read the full press release and watch the Tissue
Bank video on the Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund
website http://www.pcrf.org.uk/pages/tissue-bank.html
For more information contact info@pancreascommunity.eu
123

WALTER VILAIN & YAO YIZHI
“MELODY” JOINT EXHIBITION JUNE 29 TH 2018
Art is one amazing way to explore the full potential of
cultures and to share them with a wide public. The two
artists Walter Vilain and YAO Yizhi have achieved an
incredible level of harmony and sharing into their art,
blending European and Chinese cultures into unique
canvas bearing two peoples’ history.
From June 29, 2018 until September 10, 2018, the China
Cultural Center in Brussels was hosting the Walter VILAIN
& YAO Yizhi: “Melody” Joint Exhibition on the occasion
of the 1st Edition of the EU-China Art Dialogue, featuring
a fine selection of the most representative artworks from
the latest art creations by the two artists, alongside some
precious photos of this artistic pair.
The true beauty of art is that it knows no boundaries. Often
very singular, art can welcome several styles and cultures
and turn them into harmonious blends, making civilizations
richer and more colorful through exchanges and mutual
learning. When the East meets the West through painting,
we can see sparks triggered out of the exchanges engaged
between Chinese and Western cultures, as well as the
harmony achieved between Eastern and Western cultures
and arts.
With a shared passion and taste for arts despite their
different cultural backgrounds, the two artists, Walter Vilain
and YAO Yizhi, have created works that reinforce with and
add glamour to each other. Their friendship, beyond any
124
ZHANG Chi Minister-Counselor and Deputy Head of Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Kingdom of Belgium, ZHANG Ming Ambassador of
the Mission of the People's Republic of China to the European Union and spouse, Artist Walter VILAIN, TAN Shu Vice Director of the China Cultural Center,
Artist YAO Yizhi
© Linda Yao

Look into the Pines, 2012, 70 x 70 cm
© Yao Yizhi
125

Live performance of YAO Yizhi with traditional Chinese music
© Linda Yao
EXHIBITION
The Walter VILAIN & YAO Yizhi:
“Melody” Joint Exhibition
June 29, 2018 — September 10, 2018
SUPPORTED BY
Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the
European Union
Live performance of Walter VILAIN accompanied by classical music
© Linda Yao
126
HOSTED BY
China Cultural Center in Brussels
ORGANIZED BY
Atlas International Culture SPRL
doubts, has become a perfect illustration of the blooming
exchanges between the Chinese and European civilizations,
something well embodied in the spirit of the Silk Road.
To pay tribute to the mutual appreciation and friendship
between the two artists, the China Cultural Center in
Brussels held a joint exhibition entitled Walter VILAIN &
YAO Yizhi: Melody from June 29 to September 10, 2018.
This exhibition presented a fine collection of the most

Lotus Blossom in Summer, 2012, 70 x 70 cm
© Yao Yizhi
representative works recently created by the two artists,
together with some precious photos. It featured two forms
of paintings — European oil painting and Chinese ink
wash painting — whose co-existence is a perfect example of
harmony in diversity. Together, Walter VILAIN and YAO
Yizhi highlight the fact that European and Chinese artists
could work together to pursue the same aspirations through
different artistic means, endeavor to create a vast universe
where diverse cultures blend together into a harmonious
whole thanks to the artists’ mutual appreciation for each
other’s culture. The two artists kept conversing over their
zest for arts and created artworks that mutually resonated
with power, staying true to a shared aesthetic despite their
respective cultural traditions, Eastern or Western, past or
present. Their unusual close friendship, beyond all doubt,
became over time a perfect illustration of the blooming
exchanges between the Chinese and European civilizations
in the spirit of the Silk Road.
Just as music knows no boundaries, their friendship
resonates beyond all borders between China and Europe.
Text, China Cultural Center in Brussels
127

DIPLOMATIC WORLD
INTERVIEW WITH
SERGEY GLAZYEV
MOSCOW — RUSSIA
The world is chasing the newest innovation
trends, digitalisation is everywhere. How strong
is Russia’s development? Are there possibilities
for stronger cooperation internationally?
In Russia, as in all major countries, we have special
programs of digitalisation of the economy. Russia is
very advanced in using various kinds of information
technologies. In my opinion, you should be more active in
introducing digital technologies in all sectors, especially
in the monetary sphere. We now have opportunities to
create digital currencies, which will be controlled by
the government and there will be no risks that these
currencies will be stolen and used in other ways.
So, all the huge and really sophisticated legislation
about banking control could be easily changed by the
digitalisation of currencies, and we already have plans to
introduce the digital technologies in currency regulation.
I am speaking of crypto currencies, but am also speaking
about the national currencies with digital technologies.
Introduction of digital technologies in national currency
creation will give us opportunity to avoid all banking
risks. This is very important and interesting.
The younger generation is becoming more
globally mobile. They are opening their minds to
a global vision. How do you see this generation’s
role in international cooperation?
social group that will use these new technologies and
new opportunities.
The first problem is the differentiation of the young
population in terms of knowledge, technical ability, and
opportunities to use these new technologies.
The young generation is split; there is a minority that is
very clever, educated, and successful, but approximately
40% of young people in southern Europe do not have jobs.
Nobody needs them. This is a very dangerous trend; the
splitting of the young generation. It can be solved only
through large scale cooperation, at least in Eurasia. Young
people should have opportunities to use their knowledge
and their skills in all Eurasian countries. The second point
is differentiation in values.
For instance, in Russia we have a long-term tradition
of Christianity. There is a renaissance of the Orthodox
church and desecularization. 70% of Russians identify as
Christians. Christian values are now again very popular
in Russia also among the younger generation. There are
the Muslim part of Russia — Muslim countries — where
we are seeing the renaissance of Muslim values. The great
religions are returning in the Asian parts of Eurasia and
in Russia. In Europe you see a post-Christian situation.
Christian values are not respected at all. The national
governments introduce laws that totally reject Christian
morality.
128
This is a very important subject. The world is very
transparent in terms that information technologies
can now be used everywhere in the world. We see
international universities that use large networks to
provide education to people in different countries.
This progress will continue. The world will be more
interconnected, and of course, young people are the first
In this situation, it is very difficult to organise bridges
between young people in Asia and in Europe. They hold
quite different values, quite different understandings of
the world. For this reason, I propose a neoconservative
synthesis as a basis for the trans-Eurasian ideology. What
does this mean? You have to combine traditional values
that are implemented in the great religions of Eurasia with

Barbara Dietrich and Sergey Glazyev
© Diplomatic World
the values of social states and democracy, and likewise,
social democratic European traditions with traditional
religions as a neoconservative synthesis, which could
be the basis for common values of people from France,
Portugal, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, to China, Korea,
including Russia and Central Asia. We could come to a
consensus, a consensus in the whole Eurasian territory, as
a guideline for ideological orientation.
Could these neoconservative values not also be
found in a society that is, as you may say, post-
Christian or agnostic?
An agnostic society is not aggressive. The people who say
that knowledge is the greatest sin in ideology use some
kind of positive values. The Soviet Union was an agnostic
society. We did not have prelims of cooperation between
Christians, Muslims, and others — agnostics.
We are speaking now about an anti-Christianity. Europe
is now post-Christianity. “Post” means, in fact, anti-
Christianity. Agnostic people reject religion, but they do
not reject religious values. If you look for instance at the
moral codex of the Soviet Union, it is almost the same
as what Jesus proclaimed. The main problem with anti-
Christian trends in European education is that it creates
strong misunderstanding, even for people inside Europe.
Of course, it is not easy to do, but nevertheless we must
find common ground.
The original idea of Eurasian integration was announced
about 100 years ago. Trubnikov wrote that after the
collapse of the Soviet Union the integration could be
based only on the understanding of common history. As
far as we are people that have lived together for centuries
and have shared history, we have a basic common
understanding of basic values, we can construct the future
together.
This is the basis of Eurasian integration according to
Russian philosophical tradition. If you look to the Chinese
ideology of One Belt One Road, they say it is the initiative
of the people of one historical heritage, one historical
soul — historical fortune. So, for Eurasian integration
we need not only free trade, but common values to trust
each other. If we do not have shared values and goals of
integration, the nation states will create barriers against
communication. So, in order to be open, you need to trust
each other; in order to trust each other, you need common
values. This is the problem.
129

Our integration is based on respect of national sovereignty
and on common, mutual benefits. We do not use any force
in integration, it is totally voluntary, and it is limited.
We do not want to integrate everything. We want to
integrate trade, a common economic space, a customs
union, harmonise the anti-monopoly legislation, the
tax-legislation. But, we do not try to unify the political
systems, the education systems, the cultural systems.
We respect diversity. We integrate only where we can
achieve competitive advantages for each nation. These
new positive results for everyone are so called synergetic
effects.
Do you not think that new technologies can
function as an equalizer to disparate levels of
education due to income inequalities?
On one hand, they can be used as an equalizer. You can
live in Africa and hear lectures of Harvard University;
there are new opportunities. But, unfortunately, not
everyone can use these opportunities. When I was a
member of the OSCE inter-parliamentary assembly about
15 years ago, I proposed to introduce the Tobin tax.
Tobin is a famous economist in financial spheres. He
proposed taxation of financial speculative operations.
He mathematically proved that if you imposed taxes on
speculative operations, it will spur economic growth.
Speculations will therefore be less attractive than
investments into the real sector.
The Tobin tax was popular in Europe, some countries
introduced it, but because of European general legislation,
it made no sense to just introduce it in one country. The
European Union must introduce it in all countries. It
should be introduced internationally, let us say, as a 2.0
social tax rate on all currency speculations.
Coming back to development, what is the role
of Blockchain and Crypto in international
development?
I believe these technologies have very good prospects for
growth and implementation in the spheres where there is
a need for transparency and protection from smuggling
and manipulation. The point is that the present twolevel
banking system does not give enough protection
for clients, because any bank could become bankrupt
and you could lose all your money. For this reason, the
digitalisation of money transfers is perhaps the most
important innovation to avoid all the shortcomings of the
present two-level banking system.
The central bank can create money directly, without
commercial banks, and use them for the economy while
each person can be sure that nobody can steal his or
her money. Blockchain technology is very important for
government procurements: To end corruption, Blockchain
is a very good instrument. Everything is transparent.
Coming back to your question about information
technologies, one of the main problems is that all
internet society is not transparent; we do not know who
is our partner on the internet. Blockchain can give pure
identification for all members of the social network, which
will help avoid all kinds of manipulations and criminal
actions. The societies that are ready, according to their
values — the ruling elite is ready — Blockchain can be
quickly introduced.
Brita Achberger and Barbara Dietrich
Then, you should get new money to finance education in
less developed countries, to give young people in those
less developed countries access to the best universities and
pay for educational programs all over the world. Use this
money to overcome technical disasters, like Fukushima
in Japan, or in New Orleans, or Indonesia. We can use
this money for human development and protection. The
United States were the only delegation that voted against
this idea.
130

Wallpaper, watercolor
© Lieve Van Stappen
131

CRYPTOCURRENCIES
FEARS AND OPPORTUNITIES
After a few years of hype, experts are now tamping
down expectations for cryptocurrencies. Indeed,
several concerns about security and regulation need
to be addressed. But cryptocurrencies — and the
blockchain technology they are based on — also offer
tremendous room for innovation and efficiency.
By competing with traditional fiat currency, they
could help profligate governments and central banks
become more disciplined
GEOPOLITICAL
INTELLIGENCE
SERVICES
It was recently reported that Goldman Sachs has
suspended its plans for a cryptocurrency trading
desk. According to Vitalik Buterin, the developer of
Ethereum, a blockchain platform that runs on the
Ether cryptocurrency (the second-most valuable
cryptocurrency after Bitcoin) delaying institutional
trading for several years is a sensible move, since the
market has to settle. In an interview with Bloomberg, he
tamped down expectations and emphasized that he does
not see potential for any more of the extreme growth
cryptocurrencies have experienced over the past few
years. After the blockchain and cryptocurrency hype in
recent years, it is now time to develop the technology’s
more practical applications, he said.
Blockchain technology ensures that this information is easy
to interpret and cannot be copied. As a result, it fulfills the
ideal conditions for digitizing money, assets and intellectual
property. The blockchain cannot be modified or changed,
providing a high degree of system security.
CENTRALIZED VS. DECENTRALIZED
Money is a means to facilitate the exchange of goods and
services and to set a comparable price for that exchange.
It also stores value between exchanges. This savings (the
stored value) can also be borrowed against interest and put
back into the economy, giving the savings an important
function in providing capital.
At the core of a blockchain system is information
arranged in a sequence that is uniquely identifiable to a
person (physical or legal) and can be safely transmitted
from one user to another. This information can have
various functions and can be used multiple times. In
the case of cryptocurrencies, owners can transfer digital
money to third parties through blockchain technology.
The blockchain then acts as a payment system, working
with the user interface, like a wallet app on a smartphone.
132
In the cryptocurrency world, the sequence of information
is called a “token.” There are systems (Bitcoin), in which
this information is, technically, not designed as a token
(a token could represent, for example, any number of
Bitcoins). The term denotes the transferability of this
information and its freedom from external influence.
Princess Gisela of Liechtenstein, Expert of Geopolitical Intelligence
Services AG (GIS)

The value of today’s major currencies is based on trust in
the central banks and state treasuries, and the belief that
other actors will accept this money at face value. It also
requires trust that the banking system will properly keep,
allocate and transfer funds. This system is centralized and
requires reliable intermediaries.
On the other hand, cryptocurrencies are based on a direct
exchange between purchaser and seller. It is a decentralized
system in which the blockchain provides the necessary
ledger. This allows essentially anybody to start a currency.
Along with the three leaders — Bitcoin, Ether and Ripple
— thousands of smaller currencies have sprung up. The
Swedish National Bank even has plans to issue its own
cryptocurrency, the e-krona, while Venezuela launched
the “petro” cryptocurrency in February 2018. Liquidity is
created by so-called “miners,” who earn a small amount of
the cryptocurrency for each transaction they process. The
blockchain technology limits these operations, preventing
unlimited quantities of the cryptocurrency from being
created.
Prince Michael of Liechtenstein, Founder and Chairman of Geopolitical
Intelligence Services AG (GIS)
To raise equity, an Initial Coin Offering, or ICO, system was
developed. This uses the blockchain technology to replace
the stock market, and effectively decentralizes its function
of supplying capital to the economy.
POLARIZED APPROACH
As with any revolutionary new technology, the use of
blockchain to create independent currencies raises fears
and expectations about potential winners and losers.
In this case, the discussion is polarized and frequently
emotional. In some countries, like China, cryptocurrencies
have been banned. In others, like Luxembourg, authorities
have warned financial intermediaries against engaging in
cryptocurrency trading. In contrast, the canton of Zug,
in Switzerland, allows taxes to be paid in Bitcoin. The
Liechtenstein Financial Market Authority introduced a
regulatory laboratory for new applications. Liechtenstein is
also preparing a law that will regulate blockchain business
models, to provide legal certainty for the market.
Being able to conduct transactions without an intermediary
certainly has huge advantages in terms of time, cost and,
if the technology works correctly, security. It is a good
alternative to central bank-issued money and through
competition could eventually enforce more monetary policy
discipline in the current system.
The idea of having an alternative to traditional fiat money is
attractive, especially today, when major currencies’ savings
value is in jeopardy and the trust they require to work is
declining. Central banks are no longer focused on their
duty to protect money’s value and have instead bowed to
the pressure spendthrift governments have put on them to
finance oversized public debts.
Raising capital for newcomers or smaller growing businesses
through the existing mechanisms, especially stock
exchanges, includes cumbersome regulatory procedures and
is expensive. Venture capital is mostly targeted at specific
sectors and is not available to all innovations. An ICO is a
fast and cost-effective way to raise capital or invest.
BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS
The technology offers monetary applications that could
be tailored to the specific needs of value chains in today’s
global sharing economy, while still being able to mesh
with other monetary systems and currencies. It could also
provide liquidity for smaller entities, such as municipalities,
that need financing or payment solutions.
However, there are still issues that need resolving.
Allegations that the transactions are anonymous and might
therefore facilitate money laundering have to be addressed.
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In fact, in most cases such transactions are not anonymous,
but markets need the comfort of knowing for certain. Total
anonymity is impossible to achieve. Yet this also raises the
concern of how to protect the privacy of parties engaging in
such transactions — so necessary in financial matters — in a
decentralized environment.
Concerns have also been raised about the possibilities
of committing fraud using the technology, which some
perceive as immature. Hypothetical cases of “51 percent
attacks” (whereby a single entity or group gains control
of the majority of the system and can therefore alter the
blockchain) would also need to be addressed.
Compared to the central banks, these systems are still very
limited in capacity and speed. Substantial development work
is still required. Mining cryptocurrencies consumes huge
amounts of electricity due to the enormous computational
power required, especially when it comes to currencies like
Bitcoin. But like the fiat money issued by today’s central
banks, cryptocurrencies are not backed by any tangible
asset. The trustworthiness of the technology, developers and
owners of such currencies will have to be proven.
THE REGULATION QUESTION
Blockchain with improved scalability will increase
efficiency in many areas: logistics and supply-chain
control, healthcare, public administration (for land, car
and company registries), smart contracts and more. In the
financial industry, it might replace some banking functions,
such as payments, custody and accounts — even independent
of cryptocurrencies. The first industrial applications have
been in trial mode, such as De Beers’ diamond supplychain
tracking, which provides asset-traceability assurance
in cases of concerns about gems being used to finance
violence (so-called “conflict minerals”). Others are set
to launch soon, including Komgo and VAKT, which are
trade platforms backed by energy companies and financial
institutions.
POLITICS AND MONETARY POLICY
The central banks of the world’s largest economies
guide global monetary developments through economic
interdependence. The United States Federal Reserve, the
European Central Bank and the People’s Bank of China
are in the lead, while others, like the Bank of Japan and
the Bank of England, make up the second tier. Many other
central banks have de facto lost much of their monetary
sovereignty.
134
Shifting control away from the lawyers and regulators who
form the backbone of our current monetary system, to
programmers designing blockchain frameworks for transactions
will also pose an interesting challenge. How much regulation
will be required? This crucial question arouses plenty of debate.
Hopefully reasonable solutions can be achieved between the
promoters of supposedly “safe” centralized systems and the
new decentralized peer-to-peer applications.
Governments will certainly want to keep control of money
through central banks and monetary policy. It is extremely
unlikely that countries or supranational institutions such
as the European Central Bank (ECB) on behalf of the
European Union will renounce these functions. To maintain
this control, they can either ban cryptocurrencies or enact
regulations tough enough to strangle the technology.
As in many other cases of young, emerging technologies,
a bubble is forming in cryptocurrencies. The first cracks
have already appeared, and the bubble will eventually burst,
clearing space for a functioning system to develop. Yet a
danger exists that this pending bust might provide a pretext
to curb innovation.
With the creation of the euro currency, most European
countries delegated their monetary policy to the ECB.
That governments were ready to give up this important
instrument of power inspired great hope that the ECB
would conduct responsible monetary policy, independent
of politics. The reality, however, disappointed. Together
with the Fed especially, but also the Bank of Japan and
the People’s Bank of China, the ECB tried to stimulate
the economy with cheap money — destroying savings,
creating asset bubbles and supporting irresponsible public
expenditure and public debt through quantitative easing. In
the long run, such policies can damage a currency’s value
and erode trust in the institution that issues it.
Some countries, either because they are small or because
they want to keep politicians from manipulating their
currency, have chosen to use a foreign currency. For
example, many countries have adopted the U.S. dollar as
legal tender or have pegged their national currency to the
dollar. Montenegro, which is not a member of the eurozone,
has made the euro its official medium of exchange. These
examples show that it is often in a country’s long-term
interest to give up political control over its currency.

The stability of currencies like the Swiss franc and the
old Deutsche mark is based on the issuing institutions’
successful resistance to the expediencies of short-term
politics. For reasons of efficiency, Liechtenstein forms
part of the Swiss franc area, which includes the advantage
that the Swiss National Bank acts prudently and has broad
autonomy.
be qualified financial intermediaries, assuring business is
conducted responsibly and professionally. They will have to
fulfil international standards to prevent money laundering
and respect best-practice rules. The Liechtenstein financial
services authorities will supervise these intermediaries. It
is a promising project, with the goal of creating a safe and
efficient system.
HEALTHY ALTERNATIVE
However, loose monetary practices and overly bureaucratic
regulation of the financial industry have caused people to
look for alternatives. A traditional one for savers is gold, but
it is unsuitable for payments. Now, many see an opportunity
for cryptocurrencies to meet this need.
Liechtenstein is likely to be a pioneer, advancing pragmatic,
innovative regulation and supervision for cryptocurrency
transactions and ICOs. Such an approach can allow for
the industry to develop sustainably, while giving those
who use such services the peace of mind they require.
Those offering such services in Liechtenstein will have to
This fits with Mr. Buterin’s view that the sector must settle,
and that practical applications have to be implemented.
Unless the technology fails to develop according to
expectations (which appears unlikely) or is stifled by
legal bans or burdensome regulation (which seems more
probable), we may finally see scenarios in which traditional
money is complemented by these new technologies, with
trusted non-public agents issuing stable currencies and
providing useful financial instruments.
This article was first published at www.gisreportsonline.com
Princess Gisela of Liechtenstein (Expert of GIS)
Prince Michael of Liechtenstein (Chairman and Founder of GIS)
Blockchain
Leadership
Summit
LARGEST SWISS
BLOCKCHAIN SUMMIT
swissblockchainsummit.com
23–24 November 2018
Congress Center Basel, Switzerland
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2 500+ attendees
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jointly operated by private and institutional
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70+ speakers
carefully selected, top-of-the-mind
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Speakers: Highlights
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Prince Michael
of Liechtenstein
Chairman of Industrie- und
Finanzkontor Ets. and Geopolitical
Intelligence Services AG (GIS)
Tal Catran
Accelerators Guru, Tech Investor,
Start-Up Ecosystem Builder,
Startup Nation & TEDx Tech
Speaker
Shuonan Chen
Founding Partner at IOVC & Agile
VC, CEO at Shinect, Board Member
at North America Blockchain
Association
135

SCALABLE AND INTERNATIONAL
NEW BUSINESS MODELS:
IT IS POSSIBLE!
New investment funds supporting
social entrepreneurship and businesses
with positive societal impact are being
created on a regular basis.
136
Some investors aspire to more than a decent financial
return on investment and also want to see a positive
societal impact. But did you know that the topic “social
entrepreneurship and sustainable business models” has
become a structured research domain of its own, a new
scientific discipline? The research community in this
field — more than 110 researchers, industry leaders and
practitioners — came together during the 3rd International
Conference on New Business Models (NBM), that took
place in June at the University of National and World
Economy (UNWE) in Sofia, Bulgaria. Participants from
28 countries gathered to discuss trends in new business
models, how to ensure they are sustainable, scalable and
international, forecasts for the future, and the ongoing
transition towards a more sustainable economy.
By organizing the conference in Sofia — during its
presidency of the EU Council — Bulgaria was emphasizing
that sustainable business models were not merely a luxury
for western countries, but that they opened up great
opportunities for all countries, including those in Eastern
Europe. This 3rd conference in Sofia, which built on the
first two conferences that had been organized in Toulouse
(2016) and Graz (2017), aimed at inspiring leaders in
academia, business, and public policy, to build societies
that give the highest importance to sustainability, and stop
destroying the planet for selfish motives of netting quick
profits.
Some impressions and memorable topics are highlighted
here by Prof. Nikolay Dentchev, Conference chair and expert
in social entrepreneurship at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
(VUB) and Jan Cornelis, Emeritus Professor (VUB) and
CIDIC’s Academic Attaché who acted as a candid witness
when invited to give some impressions in the closing session.
“Bulgaria — Sofia, on my way from the airport to the hotel,
I had a deep talk with the taxi driver about the Bulgarian
soul, ending up in a discussion on gastronomy and
traditional food. A small tip, 2 Lev — a fraction of 1 Euro,
… the driver offered me a round trip, free of charge, in the
neighborhood of the hotel to locate the best restaurants.
I felt at home already” (Jan Cornelis). At UNWE, we were
welcomed by Rector Stattev, who has a talent for humorous
abnegation: “I made the Hall of Fame of scientists in the
entrance hall, but I didn’t dare to propose this honour for
the numerous famous businessmen of the university because
I couldn’t be sure how many of them have only one leg in
business, and the other one in fraud.”
“Developing countries are sometimes hesitant to consider
sustainable business models, as they are focused on the
daily survival of their businesses. But “sustainability” is a
new way of doing business: robust, solid and attractive, it’s
the future, and it can help Bulgarian businesses become
more successful players in international markets” (Nikolay
Dentchev). The transition to a more sustainable society
needs to be supported by good practices, and new business
models focused on multiple values and new theory.
“Currently our societies have paid a lot of attention to
material goods — houses, cars, clothes, food — and this is
how we signal our success, but successful people in life
promote the values of love, friendship, honesty and respect.
This latter set of values is much more important than the
former materialistic set, and thus we need to prioritize
accordingly for the wellbeing of our societies.” (Nikolay
Dentchev). Many of the other presentations also reiterated
this point, not only for Bulgaria but also for all countries
and continents.

Aerial view of downtown Sofia, Bulgaria
© Shutterstock
The programme featured 4 keynote lectures, representing
(i) the European Commission (DG Internal Market,
Industry, Entrepreneurship), (ii) academia and renowned
academic journals and (iii) the business world. A variety
of topics that are central to analysing and addressing the
challenges in ensuring “sustainable development” were
debated: new business models, sustainable development as
a concept, business ecosystems, social entrepreneurship
and the challenges at the bottom of the pyramid. Practical
illustrations of the issues and good practices culled from
case studies from around the world were shared.
SOME HIGHLIGHTS TO REMEMBER FROM THE
CONFERENCE
professional journals and conferences. In the NBM
conference, there was a strong call for theory from Jan
Jonker (Radboud University, NL), one of the founding
fathers in this field. Theory indeed allows for abstraction
and transmission of generic best practices going beyond one
single case, but it also requires a more rigorous scientific
methodology including metrics for social and ecological
impact assessment and scientific validation of results.
“I‘m convinced that the NBM field still has to make much
progress in this area” (Jan Cornelis). An inherent danger
of theory — if produced by researchers who have little or no
practical experience — is that it can start leading its own life.
Journal editors need to be very aware of this danger!
Sustainable business models seen from the perspective of
(i) the base of the pyramid and (ii) collaborative cross-sector
initiatives, were the two main themes of the conference.
Sustainable business models can gain impact only when
they are embraced in a transdisciplinary setting involving
multiple stakeholders. As often, such a transdisciplinarity
evolves into a new discipline of its own, leading to the
establishment of specific educational programmes,
University technology transfer has hitherto mainly followed
a linear multistep approach of logical thought and decision
making in conceptualizing and developing new processes,
services and products. Harry Bouwman (TUDelft, NL)
emphasized that this classical technology transfer stage
gate process leading from fundamental research to strategic
research, applied research and innovation & valorization is
still valuable but insufficient. Open research and innovation
platforms are gaining importance, directly involving
137

multiple stakeholders in all stages of the research and
innovation processes. These platforms provide valuable
opportunities to strengthen the links between technological
and business innovation. The 4 th keynote speaker, Spas
Kerimov (Printivo, BG), CEO of the startup Printivo,
stressed that theory, regulations and strict methodology
should in no way kill the dreams of young entrepreneurs
(in his case, “save human lives and extend the lifetime of
humans by a novel concept for 3D printing of living human
tissues” — see also Diplomatic World DW57, page 136).
Remember our three key words with regard to New Business
Models: sustainability, scalability and (international)
impact. In previous Diplomatic World 57 (page 135) we
stressed that Economic Diplomacy is an essential pillar of
diplomacy and it has been a main driver behind CIDIC’s
DEAC (Diplomatic, Economic, Academic and Cultural)
six monthly missions. I am convinced that in the future,
social entrepreneurship and sustainable business models
as discussed in the NBM conference should also be fully
included in the practice of Economic Diplomacy.
Scaling of startups is a common concern that becomes
even more critical in the context of social enterprises, when
considerable societal impacts are expected in addition to
economic sustainability. The initial phase of scaling up
startups once they’ve exhausted local demand for their
services or products, is a delicate stage in their growth.
Therefore, more than ever, startups that are conceived
of as international businesses from the beginning should
be encouraged. The NBM community might be a fertile
ground for such startups. “What I heard during the NBM
conference strengthens my conviction that universities
should pay much more attention to strengthening
multicultural skills in their curricula and teaching
programmes, and engage more intensely in exercising their
social responsibility by providing international experience
for their students” (Jan Cornelis).
“My head was filled with new insights after the NBM
conference and as I still had three hours of free time before
going to the airport, I decided to visit the Museum of
Contemporary Art. The taxi driver dropped me at the wrong
place in the middle of nowhere. I prepared for a long walk,
but in Sofia you never walk alone for very long.
The wife of an ICT businessman supporting the Museum
of Science for Children recognised me. She gave me a lift
to the Museum of Socialist Art (on my map: Museum of
Totalitarian Art — note the difference), a pearl lost in the
middle of huge blocks of buildings and skyscrapers. I was
the only visitor of the museum’s magnificent sculpture park
and poster exhibition. I recommend it. Try to get hold of the
conservator, a talkative witness of the recent past!”
(Jan Cornelis).
The base of the pyramid refers to the most poor and
vulnerable communities in the world. Unfortunately, more
than 40% of the world’s population is living below the
poverty line. Hence, it is important to develop sustainable
business models to resolve the daily challenges of this large
population. So far, we’ve been looking at the untapped
potential of the base of the pyramid as customers, while at
the NBM conference in Sofia scholars from different parts
of the world viewed people at the base of the pyramid as
central drivers of sustainable business models.
Prof. Dr. Nikolay Dentchev
Chair of Social Entrepreneurship; Faculty of Economic
& Social Sciences and Solvay Business School,
Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).
vubsocialentrepreneurship.com
Prof. Dr. Jan Cornelis
Emeritus Professor (VUB) and Academic Attaché CIDIC
This means that poor people should be seen as
entrepreneurs and innovators, and not so much as simply
customers or beneficiaries of aid. Several papers also
reflected on how established multinationals could be
involved at the base of the pyramid, as part of a collectivity
of actors. Please note that scalability is imperative if we
want to achieve meaningful solutions for the problems of
the people at the base of the pyramid.
138

Wallpaper, watercolor
© Lieve Van Stappen
139

THE FIRST SHOPPING MALL
100% DEDICATED TO
DIPLOMATS AND EXPATS
Always interested in and supporting new technologies,
Diplomatic World has recently developed a new
partnership with ExpoExpat, a virtual reality shopping
mall 100% dedicated to diplomats and expats. We met
with Mr Davy Wauters, co-founder of this exciting
project. Here is what he had to tell us.
How did it all start, how did you get the idea of
creating a virtual shopping mall?
After several years working within the diplomatic
community as a communication officer at NATO
Headquarters, I joined the Anchor Group, a company
connecting businessmen all around the world thanks to
its international networking platform. My friend, Yannick
Kalantarian (CEO of the company 2Advice), introduced me
to the founder of the Anchor group, Mr Ivan Hiel. Through
the Anchor group network we met an American company
developing virtual reality technology in the Silicon Valley,
California. We all sat down together, brainstormed and
finally decided that it was time to create something new:
ExpoExpat, the first virtual shopping mall 100% dedicated
to expats and diplomats.
Why should we visit ExpoExpat and how does it
work in practice?
When you arrive in a new country it can be difficult to know the
right places to go, to seek the best service providers and how
to contact them. ExpoExpat offers a one-stop shop providing
diplomats and expats with a wide range of information and
services they may need to enhance their stay in Belgium, saving
them valuable time. Moreover, all shops are able to serve
visitors in English. You can visit the hub from wherever you are
in the world, also before your arrival in the country!
When we were creating ExpoExpat, we wanted to provide
some extra incentive for people to visit our mall. That is why
visitors will be able to benefit from advantages, discounts
and contests only available in the ExpoExpat environment.
140
© ExpoExpat

© ExpoExpat
Concretely, once you have logged in, you discover and
explore a new socially interactive online experiment. Thanks
to your interactive 3D avatar, visitors and exhibitors will
be able to easily engage with each other via the integrated
chat, native call and email functions. You will not only
meet exhibitors but also other expats and you will be able to
exchange experiences and advices with them.
Last but not least, I would like to add that inside the
mall you can also access the Auditorium, a virtual room
where videos, conferences, forums and interviews can be
broadcast, via live stream or pre-recorded content.
Not only is a virtual reality shopping mall an innovative
concept but it’s also an ecologically friendly approach to
shopping that is completely free to access! So don’t hesitate,
come and visit us!
Who can access and how can we visit the
shopping mall?
ExpoExpat is open to all the International Organizations (EU,
NATO, UN, Eurocontrol, BRICS, SHAPE, etc), as well as
to the many Embassies, Ministries, Consulates and even to
companies hiring expats. To enter ExpoExpat, simply visit
www.expoexpat.com, the mall is there waiting for you, open 24/7!
How do you see the future of your project?
In the short term, we are constantly seeking to further
develop and improve by prospecting new shops and
enlarging the list of services proposed.
In addition, if a Ministry of Foreign Affairs service would
like to promote its country, we would be happy to provide
a dedicated space inside the mall where each country could
present itself. In the mid term, we know that families and
health are two very important areas of interest for everyone
and we would, therefore, like to develop two dedicated
spaces for these issues. An expat could, for example, look
for and find a local doctor speaking his native language.
Another example would be to offer recommendations
for educational and leisure activities for the children and
partners of expats.
In the longer term, I would like to develop this concept in
other cities like New York City, Geneva, Vienna and other
major international centres. With the Anchor group, we are
willing to move forward, to explore all new opportunities!
If any Embassy, organization or company would like to
develop its own virtual reality environment, based on our
model, please contact us and we will be happy to help. The
Anchor Group is open to all business suggestions!
Davy Wauters
© ExpoExpat
The future is bright and we are part of it.
141

AI WILL BE OUR PARTNER,
NOT OUR SUCCESSOR
PROF DR JAN DE MAERE
The economists Hayek and Friedman convinced the world that capitalism
is practically superior to all alternatives, not on moral, but on practical
grounds, linked to the essence of human nature. It’s not a perfect system
and the message to those who did not profit from it is: ‘This is just the way
the economy works, deal with it. Capitalism autoregulates itself by elimination!’
142
Until a few years ago, laws and regulations moderated
the excesses of the system somewhat. Theoretically, we
all have the same potential for success if we exploit our
talents. But, genetics teach us that we are not born with
an equal potential. Inequality is essential up to a certain
degree for the progress of humanity, but the extreme of it is
unbearable. Historically, Marxism and its applications only
led to the oligarchy of a nomenclature and to dictatorship.
No return to old values will be helpful in the new world order,
it leads only to populism without practical solutions. We have
to establish a new moral code for our relationship with AI and
Deep Machine Learning to eliminate the growing alienation
many of us experience. Who will be in charge? This change
of economic and social paradigm by the digital world and its
algorithms imposes itself with a brutality, unheard of. The
Renaissance, the Industrialization and the invention of the
modern world after 1945 were terrible challenges, but nothing
compared to the "This AI-Big data revolution competes with
our brain". It’s a challenge we have to take on with optimism,
nevertheless we have to remain vigilant. AI allows fabulous
gains in productivity in the service economy, communication
and health care as long as we are not manipulated by
machines, as the heroes in Matrix.
Since the Industrial Revolution, capitalism has an inherent
tendency to create cycles of boom & bust. After the brutal
decline of the manufacturing industry in the early eighties,
we lived through many crises such as in 1987 and 1990,
after which it was again business as usual. But, the casinolike
gambling by banks in a global market without rules,
almost took the entire global financial system to the brink
(Bear Stearns March 2008; Lehman Brothers September 15,
2008). The ‘too big to fail’ principle didn’t work and nobody
followed Benjamin Franklin’s advice: ‘They must all hang
together or most assuredly they would hang all separately’.
Nobody was hanged. Cassandra, the daughter of the Trojan
king announced Troye’s destruction, nobody believed her.
While knowing what destiny would bring, she was unable
to time the tipping point correctly. Her warning didn’t help.
The few economists announcing the next crash explain
rationally that the real question is not ‘if’ but ‘when’. The
veracity of each economic theory is to be seen in the context
of the time. Like Odysseus’ Trojan horse, catastrophe
pops up at night, unexpectedly. A forecast is not science.
Therefore Economy has to be a social-behavioral science,
if it’s science at all. Mankind is all but purely rational.
Emotionally-driven by greed and hunger for domination,
it compensates its drive for competition to some degree by
empathy and regulations. Neuro marketing explores some of
the aspects of consumers in function of their information,
experience and evolutionary drive. Data-mining and AI
propose strategies to boost consumer spending in function
of different categories of psychological profiles, linked to
their income. But, who is intelligent, the machine or the
creators of the algorithms?
The aftermath of the 2008 crash still dominates our economic
and political lives. To avoid a total implosion, governments
bailed-out the banks, increasing overall government debt in a
financialized economy. The credit crunch is not over and led
to economic shrinkage, a great moderation is still imposed
on most state budgets. The people who caused the crisis
got away with it unharmed, but life got harder for normal
people. In the global world today, more people are doing
better than 10 years ago. The global extreme-poor are better
off, the previous global middle class in the Western world

Prof Dr Roland Pochet Secretary General of the Belgian Brain Council and Prof Dr Jan De Maere University Art & Design, Cluj
© Prof. Dr. Jan De Maere
are in relative decline. The 1% top rich became better off, the
others face still today declining real pay and in-work poverty.
The new Stakhanovism of the GAFA industry, atomizing and
intensifying jobs, eliminates every free minute on the work
place. This inequality leads to political crisis. New fault lines
pop up and boost populism everywhere.
The new algorithmic society developed a new paradigm
for growth in the formerly protected service industry,
addressing the needs of a whole audience at once through
new social media. The non-revalorization of jobs in health
care and education dehumanizes and alienates. The
‘Uber model’ is its most profitable expression: extreme
competition on the work floor without social protection.
Only the top of this new GAFA economy accumulates
wealth as never seen before.
Nevertheless, the S&P 500 now stands at more than twice
the level to which it fell in September 2008. Employment
rates are up but wages remain low. Transactions still lack
transparency and a strong central authority. Hedge funds
still do high-frequency trading based on information of
their data centers. The Basel based Bank for International
Settlements (Central bank of central banks) estimates
the over-the counter deals (OTC) at $352 trillion yearly.
Governments buy back their own debt with newly minted
electronic money (QE, Quantitative easing). But Georges
Soros warns: ‘The global balance sheet of the world economy
shows much more liabilities than assets’.
Therefore, for the ultra-rich, cash is like a hot potato, passed
back and forwards between them in a competitive global
system. They buy yachts, real estate and Contemporary art.
Prices go up. Paintings are not on the wall but in vaults.
QE sustains these high prices, thus adding to inequality.
Immediacy replaces the longing for quality in art. Olafur
Eliasson, James Turrell and many other artists explore now
also the unknown continent of AI (Artificial intelligence) in
their works of art. The Belgian Brain Council organizes on
18-19 October in Liège its meeting (www.braincouncil.be).
At this occasion they organize a competition for works of
art related to neuroscience in the broadest sense.
The famous caricaturist Pierre Kroll presides the jury,
which will select works for the exhibition ‘Brain-Art’ in
the Liège Calatrava railway station’s exhibition space
(www.europaexpo.be). The selected works will be auctioned
off in November. The profit, 50% of the price, will finance
brain related research projects, selected by the Belgian Brain
Council. Brain related diseases (Alzheimer, Parkinson etc.)
represent in Europe 40% of medical costs. Brain research
receives only 10% of the total medical research. Therefore,
much more investment is needed, but governments are
cash-poor and it is in their interest to keep the cost of
credit low. Old fashioned art lovers hung their paintings
on the wall to be admired. Their children inherited them.
Today, the political correct Contemporary art addresses the
actual social and political problems in a new language of
immediacy, slogans and street art with great success. Art
speaks the language of its time.
Therefore it became an experience, rather than a beautiful
object to be admired on the wall. The craving for artful
beauty is seen since the second halve of the twentieth
century as a decadent bourgeois status symbol. The classical
art-market dwindles down to the niche-markets it had in
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144
the sixties, when only passionate collectors bought art and
antiquities. Until then, art involved aesthetics, authenticity
and quality control. A masterpiece is unique and not
directly derived from its predecessors. This all changed
in times of Concept and Postmodernism. ‘AI art’ bears
strongly on real art works. Is this intelligence artificial?
Not in my opinion, since machine produced art depends
on earlier examples brought together by humans and on
Big-data mining. I leave in the middle of the discussion if
a pile of bricks or an unmade bed is art or not. The new
stars of the Contemporary art after 1980 obtain incredible
prices at auction. As in the digital economy, the winner
takes it all in this exclusive market. The art production by
hundred thousands of artists supersedes largely the global
art consumption, only the happy few sell their works.
Galleries and art promotors create false rarity on the market
by manipulating sales. They offer the few ’trendy-quality
works’ available only to their best clients as a great favor.
They feed collectors with price data-bases as a necessary
by-product. Professionals and vendors are always better
informed than the buyers, so, they do need less this data.
The new app ‘ArtAssistant‘ developed by Alexander
Tuteleers allows collectors and museums to manage their
collection, while connected to all the data flow in the art
world. Only a few collectors make up their mind themselves,
most have art advisers to guide them. They buy with their
ears, craving to discover the next Gerhard Richter at the
opening of the Frieze or Basel fairs. The real art experience
is not about fame and money, but about deeply felt emotion
and happiness. It’s not a fast flash but a slow and intense
becoming in the quiet heritage of its awareness.
Will we all become ‘cyborgs’ with reinforced brains? The
human brain faces an everyday greater competition with
sentient computer brains. We are the pinnacle of evolution,
but machines are smarter in many domains, while we
are still playing God. Ray Kurzweil pretends to be able
to download one’s total brain capacity into a machine to
create a human-machine hybrid (The Singularity is Near,
2005). He imagines that in 2045 computers will be smarter
than all humans combines (singularity). This will allow a
non-biological extension of the neo-cortex. But, not only
machines are able to enhance the brain. David Glanzman
and neurobiologists of the University of Los Angeles
achieved the transplantation of memories from one trained
Californian sea snail to another without training (eNeuro
magazine) by transferring RNA from the nucleus of a
neuron. The snails without training adapted immediately
their behavior in the same way the trained snails did. This
Billy-Billy Flowerpot robot (www.zorabots.be) © Prof. Dr. Jan De Maere
RNA (ribonucleic acid) translates the genetic code in
proteins. Before this discovery, neuroscience assumed it was
only through synaptic connections that memory originated.
Therefore it’s probable that RNA plays also a role in the
creation of human memories. Elon Musk has said he will
unveil ‘Neuralink’ a device working on ultra-high-bandwidth
machine-interfaces, that merge the brain with AI, providing
‘super-human cognition’. This information flow between
the frontal cortex and the AI extension of yourself will
not be under human control. Two thousand years ago,
Juvenal already warned us: ’Who will watch the watchman?’
AI systems are in the hands of only a few individuals,
organizations and states, deciding freely their targets
without any regulation, control, inspection, implementation
and enforcement of the (non-existing) rules. Ethical and
social issues have to be addressed on a global level, but we
all witness every day how powerless global organizations
such as ONU and UNESCO are. Global warming measures
are still waiting for application. We didn’t learn anything
from history. It will be as always: "too little too late"!
Google’s AI-equipped Waymo cars freely drive in Phoenix
Arizona, but they are still confined in a ‘geo-fenced gozone’
determined by humans. In medical diagnostics, great
progress is made with the help of AI, but it didn’t replace
the role of the doctor in cancer detection. He makes still
the final diagnostic. Algorithms make police work easier
by predicting locations of street crime and drug dealing. In
Japan and China lonely men buy expensive good looking
female robots as companions. Since it is a growing trend,
they are probably satisfied with their acquisition, fulfilling
all their needs. They fall in love with an algorithm that
knows them well, since it exploits their data in a screwed
manner. They are unaware of the fact that this AI creates
only the mirror of their craving selves, producing machine
born interaction on which they can invest the illusions
of their sentiments. For the elderly in homes and care

centers, there is now a green smiling digital flowerpot
device called Billy-Billy to which they can ask questions
such as the weather forecast, the news and it’s capable of
reading incoming sms (www.zorabots.be). Loneliness is
treated by machines because the nurses are too few and to
busy. A new relationship between men and machines has
to be established. Enhancing human intelligence has many
advantages, but it is essential to keep our critical distance in
real terms, not as an illusion.
AI does miracles, technology makes things easier for
everybody. The Blue-Brain Research Concept in Lausanne
simulates as much as possible the human brain and its 100
billion neurons. Today, it is not even capable to reproduce that
of a worm, having only 302 neurons. Computational statistics
improve rapidly, but AI is still far away from the complex
requirements of human intelligence. Nevertheless, they can
make deductions from big-data that human brains cannot.
Machine learning works with algorithms. They are step-bystep
instructions, given to a machine, fed with big-data. They
need a detailed target focusing on a consumer profile and
enough practice corrected by humans to find out what to do
by their self. They need education as horses and dogs do,
through reinforcement of good behavior and ignoring bad.
AI and DML can be tricked by human creativity. AI-based
facial recognition software uses characteristic edge patterns of
light and shadow rather than the real facial features as such,
creative hackers can trick it easily.
Privacy and safety are not at all guaranteed in this new world,
therefore ‘Justice and Peace’ are needed. This old dream of
order and happiness is well illustrated in the drawing Federico
Zuccaro made as a design for a fresco in Firenze, circa 1560.
AI is a powerful weapon to control people’s behavior. The
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and a leading Beijing
university publish an annual ‘social responsibility report’ of
celebrities, without respecting their privacy. The Chinese
actress Fan Bingbing, falling foul of the communist regime, is
now rated at 0% and accused of negative social impact. Her
whereabouts are unknown since early June.
Cyber-criminality and hacking soar at incredible levels
since two years. On world level, the amount of digital crime
is bigger than the total turnover of the drug trade. British
Airways lost thousands of credit card details from its clients.
Cambridge Analytics is another illustration of the inevitable
weakness of cyber security and data protection. Rogue
states employ hackers, intervening in democratic elections
by influencing voters, as the scandal around the company
Frederico Zuccaro, Justitia et Pax, drawing c 1560, Firenze
© Prof. Dr. Jan De Maere
Cambridge Analytics illustrated. People are flawed without
knowing. Our propensity for errors is cleverly exploited by
hackers. Cybersecurity is powerless when faced with human
error or negligence. We should replace our passwords
regularly, which should be very long and random to be safe.
Cyber-Firewalls are technologically running behind the
genius of the most talented cyber criminals. All intelligent
connected machines are hackable. We will have to live with
this problem in a digital world. In cyber criminality, the % of
condemned criminals is less than 2%. Security measures are
always taken after the problem arose.
The art and antiquities market is infected by fakes on many
levels, even if material scientific analysis of works of art
is progressing strongly. This kind of analysis is not only
costly and time-consuming. As we saw in the scandal of
the so-called Russian avant-garde exhibition in the Ghent
museum of art, owners not always allow it to be undertaken.
The artness of art has no formal rules, but does not accept
lies and deception. Many questions remain, but art is and
will always be a deeply felt human emotional need, allowing
by its illusion to escape the alienation of an ever changing
world. AI and machines are good in taking care of many
human needs. An elderly person in a care center might feel
comfort in talking to a smiling digital flowerpot, but I doubt
that one day AI will supersede the horizon of our aesthetic
expectations and our longing for belonging. Technology and
virtual reality will affect our mental capacity. People have
to re-evaluate as well the benefits as the risks of intelligent
machines and enhanced humans.
145

THE RUSSIAN AVANT-GARDE
AND THE SOUL OF NATIONS
PROF. DR. JAN DE MAERE
We have to study art not by reading and listening, but by careful
observation of masterpieces. With curiosity, cultivating doubt,
practice and skilled mentors, everybody can become at some
degree a better connoisseur than initially thought. The essential
requirement is to see thousands of paintings and to have mentors,
knowing how to look.
146
The Russian collector and philantropist Vladimir Potanin’s
foundation (fondpotanin.ru) published the book ‘Russia the
20 th Century’. It covers the Russian culture and history of
the XXth century in a visual way, without scholarly essays.
The motto is: ’The absence of textual guidance allows readers
to create their own vivid images of the century’. How right they
are! They let the art speak for itself, publishing documents,
but also posters, caricatures and images of decorative
arts. It makes us understand what shapes the Russian
mentality and soul. At the end of the XIXth century, the
industrialization expanded cities and created new wealth for
entrepreneurs such as Shschukin and Morozov, which were
capitalists, becoming collectors with an open mind. They
bought Impressionist paintings, Matisse and van Gogh.
Musicians, poets, philosophers and artists felt the onset
of a new era. Dark forces gathered under the outwardly
calm of the rural world, forgotten by the evolution. It
became a revolution, also in the arts. The Russian avantgarde
provided the first radical abstract works of art.
There is a trend to aestheticize those works of art without
taking in account their political context. Propaganda was
indeed the task that Lenin had set for the arts. Artists
lived within the Soviet system and sought to make a useful
contribution through their idealistic fervor. The end of the
twenties destroyed hope and brought economic disaster,
collectivization followed. Millions were ‘reeducated’ by
forced labor and crushed by the Soviet machine. The
avant-garde dream deflated. The individual was seen as
an impersonal unit of society. Writers and artists had to
praise all this and found novel ways to excel in the arts
in an impoverished Russia. After the victory over the
Fascists, a great hope was born for a bright future, quickly
banished by the Soviet authorities. But, each new generation
grew up in confident belief of a better future, only to be
disappointed at the end. In this difficult times, Soviet art
became socialist realism illustrating the exhortations of
the Central Committee of the communist party. Not only
Malevich and Kandinsky made masterpieces. Many others
are rediscovered today. Later, even under duress and serving
propaganda, great art was made in the Soviet empire until
its end in 1990. The main Soviet censorship body, Glavlit,
eliminated all undesirable art and ensured that the correct
ideological spin was expressed. Soviet realism was not
realistic, it celebrated an utopia, never attained. The French
translation of ‘The Encyclopedia of Russian Avant-garde’
(www.apopsix.fr) represents the monumental work done by
the art historians Andrey Sarabyanov and Vasilly Rakitine
and 236 colleagues in their collaboration with 88 museums,
specialized in the field. The two volumes contain more
then 1200 bibliographic references and more than 4000
illustrations. Presented at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the
encyclopedia was awarded with the Best Book of the year
price in 2015. An English version is in preparation.
Sometimes the well-educated observation of a connoisseur
discovers flaws in the structure of the paint layer and in
small subliminal details. Beauty is also expressed in the
tactile expression of the structure of the painted surface. A
Kandinsky painting of a certain period has a characteristic
pattern structure, connoisseurs know that. In this authentic
painting by Kandinsky, exposed in the Albertine of
Vienna it is visible. Its director Klaus Albrecht Schröder

Ishametov, Coal is the true Bread of Industry,1985
© Prof. Dr. Jan De Maere
investigated the authenticity of the paintings of this
collection offered on loan to the museum, before exhibiting
it. Intelligent people ask advise from specialists after having
done their ‘due diligence’. They are aware of their limits.
In tempore non suspecto, the visitors of the Museum of
Fine Arts of the city of Ghent admired without reserve
the Malevich, Kandinsky and other masters of the Russian
Avant-Garde of the newly discovered Toporovski collection.
However, ten international specialists expressed the greatest
reservations as to the authenticity of the exhibited works,
immediately after the opening of the exhibition.
The authorities had little to say about this scandal that
hit the national and international press. It’s common
knowledge that the market of Russian Avant-Garde
paintings is a mine field and fraught with fakes since
decades. The then Ghent museum director Catherine
De Zeger and Flemish minister for culture Steven Gatz
replied that “they have no evidence of inauthenticity and
trusted the 'collectors'”. A strange answer. If museums would
exhibit everything that is not proven fake, the result would
be hilarious. Many Flemish museum directors complained
about the bad reputation Flanders museums and their staff
got and dissociated themselves from the decisions taken
by the minister and by the mayor of Ghent, supported by
the town council. Obviously, De Zegher relied on their
own (non-existing) experience in this field, since she did
not ask for assistance from the connoisseurs in the field.
She even claimed later to have asked an expert, who said
he was never asked his opinion about those paintings. The
story of the provenance of the collection is as fuzzy as the
biography of the owners. Five hundred so-called top works
came in from Russia. Neither the director of the museum
nor the minister questioned the probable illegal export and
the equally illegal importation into Belgium of these works.
Not any paperwork exists. The Toporovski’s did not allow
that material scientific analysis was undertaken on their
collection. The works were finally withdrawn from the walls
of the museum when the international media reported the
scandal. Later it appeared that an old Ukrainian museum
catalogue was a newly printed facsimile, faked by the
so-called collectors as proof of authenticity of one of the
works. It became also known that the owners of the works
could take them back immediately from the museum if they
were sold to a collector. The Ghent criminal police opened
an investigation, still going on.
Connoisseurs may observe a difference, but, the material
analysis of these paintings will give us significant indications,
allowing to authenticate them or not. It might well be that
his 'collection', coming from nowhere, follows the traces of
Ruffini, Beltracci, Legros and de Hory, is a scam for believers.
But, we will have to wait until we know the results of the
scientific material analysis, the art historical and provenance
research of Toporovski’s collection, to be certain. Let us
compare now the details of the surface of the paint layer
in the Albertina’s authentic Kandinsky with the texture of
Toporovski's paintings, published in the advertisement by the
Ghent museum.
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148
ILLUSTRATION KANDINSKY
There is an amazing coincidence to this all. On May 14
this year, the American writer Tom Wolfe (1930-2018),
became famous with his first novel ‘The Bonfire of the
Vanities’ (1987), died. After a successful career as journalist
at the Washington Post and the New York Herald Tribune
he became a romancier. His goal in writing fiction was
‘to document contemporary society in the tradition of John
Steinbeck, Charles Dickens and Emile Zola.’ His last novel
‘Back to Blood’ (2012) is about class, wealth, race, crime,
sex, corruption and ambition in Miami. His heros, a Latino
police officer and a young journalist, discover a scam
involving the mayor of Miami and a Russian crook Sergueï
Koroliov, offering his collection of Russian Avant-Garde
(Kandinsky, Malevich, Gontcharova etc) to the museum,
Miami built specially for his collection. In fact, it are fakes
painted for Koriolov by a talented Russian painter living in
Miami, named Igor. As usual in the tradition of the New
Journalism, Wolfe took his inspiration from a real ‘fait
divers’ that has an incredible similitude with the Ghent
scandal. Did Igor Toporovski read Wolfe’s novel?
Fakes can appear as beautiful, but, once they are revealed
as such, deception pops up. If people like them, why is it
important to distinguish a fake? The woman I love is the
most beautiful in the world. If she deceives me, she is no
less beautiful, but her love becomes a lie. Any false appears
as an imposture, as soon as it is discovered. The fake is an
insult to the 'me who loves'. Beauty bears imperfections and
flaws, but no lies. Therefore, the believe in its authenticity
is an ontological aspect of beauty, otherwise it’s perceived
as prostitution. The painting has to be believable. Perceived
as a "fake", it is not a plausible. The lack of authenticity
changes completely its reception. Suddenly the viewer
discovers every flaw of the fake and experiences it as a lie!
A painting becomes a “fake”, when it’s intended as such by
its maker; or by its unacceptable attribution to a master. The
discovery of deception requires courage, self-control, great
domain knowledge, adequate critical observation by thinslicing
and multi-parallel computing (intuition) and therefore
brain energy. We suspect authenticity by evaluating different
degrees of probability, and weigh it against how resourceintensive
it would be to have this suspicion confirmed of
rejected. This involves: analyze-based investigation of nonsystematical
facts, material analysis and hypothesis testing.
The very existence of the term “fake” presupposes that
our desire for the "artness of art" is something more than
visual beauty alone. Art is looking for ‘meaningful truth’,
authenticity and creative novelty. Great art does not have
a precedent, but has many followers. Our critical attitude
recognizes the exceptional quality of the masterpiece as
an essential token of hope and reassurance. Human beings
have a propensity to believe beautiful stories, as well in
art as in politics. Evolution wired us to be confident. We
are born believers, since this attitude brings more benefits
than problems. People accept a falsehood if it seems to
conform to known facts, but good sense normally prevails
at the end. All humans are in need of narratives and like
to believe other people’s stories. When one tells a story,
which explains a nice vision of our world based on some
known facts (the Peacock Tail syndrome), we listen, without
considering our self as naïve. We all dream of legitimacy,
power, having a good reputation and to be liked. Crooks
present themselves as the best person to fulfill this desire.
They tell us what we want to hear and hope for. We often
attach meaning to things that are unworthy of it, because we
want to believe they are true. The individual aspect of the
aesthetic art experience is essential for each of us. Everyone
is convinced to have good taste. We have the right to love
what we love, even if others consider it mediocre. The
criteria of our satisfaction are determined by the horizon
of our expectations, by our knowledge of the field and by
our critical cognitive-perceptive experience. In addition,
we are social beings. We hope to share our preferences and
values. We hope to see them validated positively by others.
The opinion of specialists and reference persons exerts an
influence on the way we perceive and value things.
The Belgian newspaper De Standaard published an interview
with professor Antoon Van den Braembussche (Rotterdam-
VUB). He argues that only the verdict of his ‘gut-feeling’ is
the real art experience, unbiased by knowledge, the opinion of
specialists, free of inferences by the dogmas of the art market
and the museum world. If this is true, he is the only un-biased
person in the world. There is not such a thing as perception
without information bias and cognition. The neurophysiology
of cognitive perception observes brain activity in real time by
f-MRI, clearly demonstrate that it is impossible to separate
cognition from observation and bias, even in the initial phase,
which is called 'intuitive' (activity in the lobes of the prefrontal
cortex). Unfortunately for professor Van den Braembussche,
even his 'gut-feeling', the experience of his intuition, which
he situates in his belly, is already conditioned from the onset
by the context of the experience, memory, knowledge and
information. He forgot that his perception of the world is
shaped by his beliefs, expectations and experiences.

The experience of art is much more than aesthetic
emotion, information, fame, expert opinion and market
value. It is above all a critical emotion, felt as a bodily
experience, which intensity supersedes the horizon of
our expectations. Its novelty is essential. This stabilized
ambiguity of the physiological neural configuration of this
emotion is the result of the spontaneous confrontation
of mind concept of our perception with the whole of
our personality, with all that it entails. It transforms
our emotions into our personal feeling. This acts as a
revelation to the self, causing disappointment or wonder,
observable in f-MRI. The hierarchy of the experience
determines the degree of excitement and love that arises
from the work of art.
Everyone, experiencing a work of art, has some kind of
response, ranging from incomprehension, disliking to
great excitement. A connoisseur or an art-critic has to
cultivate the habit of doubting his own reactions, asking
himself why he feels like he does. He has to have the
ability to articulate those questions in the light of vast
domain knowledge. The validation of an authenticity
opens a critical collective debate between members
of an informal worldwide network of specialists and
connoisseurs. Unanimity about authenticity is often a
rare commodity. Taking in account the discoveries of
neuroscience, authenticity can only be a question of
an educated opinion of specialists with great domain
knowledge, based on the results of scientific analysis.
Each painting is instantly evaluated (intuition) in terms
of previous experiences and esthetic-cognitive preferences
(desire), before reason intervenes. Since the brain can
grasp fictional concepts, humans learn by storytelling.
This fictional causal combination of memories is the
reference frame allowing categorization and qualityappraisal,
but it is not without flaws. Our only link to
reality is our subjectivity, yearning to be validated in order
to obtain a higher degree of objectivity by the interaction
of thesis and anti-thesis (Hegelian dialectic interplay:
Aufhebung). Authenticity sets a context for the reputation
of a painting and defines precise expectations.
The human nature is wired toward creating meaning out
of meaninglessness. We are all suckers for belief and faith,
giving us hope. Hearing a nice story, we become blind to
inconsistencies, which become glaring when discovered.
Unconsciously, we react to the demand for complicity by
the crooked storyteller, from whom we accept the inner
urgency to express the split in his personality, up to a
Grebenikov, Completed ahead of Schedule, 1976
© Prof. Dr. Jan De Maere
certain degree. We admire secretly his authority, based
on his lack of empathy. On an extreme level, that’s why
psychopaths are so good in seducing their victims and later
their lady lawyers, when in prison. When the mask falls off
through the revelation of the deception, only shame and
sorrow appear. Fakes intend to deceive.
Russian and Ukrainian culture are an essential part of
European culture since thousand years. Regimes are
changing, conflicts arise, but behind all that lingers the
suffering and hope of each of us for a better understanding.
The history of Europe started with Charlemagne's state
administration of a great part of the European nations,
all united in one culture, nevertheless their ethnic and
geographic differences. That common culture is the wealth
of nations. Quality in art and culture aims at the roots of
our identity. Empathy domesticates our evolutionary nature
and its subsequent aggressive drive. Galton and Darwin
would agree that this stabilized ambiguity between Nature
& Nurture, hidden deep in our mind, soul and personal
feelings, is the cradle of the uniqueness of every one of us.
149

BREAD, FRENCH LEGACY IN ASIA
THE SUCCESS STORY
OF BAKER ERIC KAYSER
Eric Kayser is a French artisan baker. He is a
former “Compagnon du Devoir” (Compagnonnage
being an old, traditional French mentoring network
based on apprenticeship with traveling masters);
on completing his "Tour de France" and his
international training, mainly in Quebec, he opened
his first bakery in Paris in 1996.
During these early years, I and other friends from all over
the world visited him in his little shop on rue Monge,
more or less opposite a church. And there we could taste
his traditional bread with its creamy taste and texture
surrounded by wonderful aromas of cereals and dried fruits.
From this Japanese experience, we believe a lot in the Asian
continent: 7 years ago, we opened an office in Hong Kong,
dedicated to the whole continent which has allowed us
to spread our expertise in China, Vietnam, and especially
Cambodia. French bread is popular!
We listened to his explanations on the making of bread with
liquid yeast, certified flours without additives and on his
personal invention, the Fermentolevain machine. Today he
is just as passionate about his baker's job and about sharing
it in different continents. We are very proud of his conquest
of the Asian market thanks to his savoir-faire made in
France! And after all, isn’t bread the main French heritage
in Asia?
After visiting Washington as part of a deputation
accompanying President Macron, we saw you last
July alongside members of the Thai Royal Family
inaugurating a new bakery in Bangkok. What does
Asia represent in the development of the Kayser
Bakeries network?
150
Asia is essential in my life! 17 years ago, when I wanted to
open my first bakery abroad, I turned to Asia, specifically
Japan. After my first trip, I was fascinated by Japanese
people, their culture and their gastronomy.
I immediately knew that this country would be the gateway
to Asia and its diversity. We were very welcome and today
there are more than 20 bakeries that are located in the
country of the rising sun.

Thai Royal Family and Eric Kayser
As with any artisanal product, I imagine that the
quality of ingredients, particularly flour, is just as
important as the expertise in the making. How do
you supply your Asian bakeries? Will you find local
suppliers?
The growth of a bakery obviously goes through the study
of raw materials available "on-site". For our pastries, we
choose to use local and seasonal fruits. It was obvious to us
that our bread flour should also come from local suppliers
as much as possible! Fortunately we don’t have to import
the flour from France!!! After several trials, we found an
excellent flour from a Korean partner.
culture make it a must-see. And the proximity of Vietnam
and Cambodia have made it a logical follow-up.
As for the presence of the Royal Family at the inauguration,
which was flattering, I can imagine a certain penchant for
our croissants unless it is for our delicious financiers who
count many "addicts" around the world!
Tell us about your choice of Thailand after Japan,
China, Vietnam and Cambodia. Why did members
of the Royal Family attend the inauguration?
Through its office in Hong Kong, Maison Kayser’s ambition
is to spread "good French bread" across the continent. How
could Bangkok be ignored? Its history, architecture and
Eric Kayser and Dr. Pick Keobandith
151

How do you explain the success of your bakeries in
Asia? Who are your customers? Are they members
of an international élite or locals reflecting an
evolution in the consumers’ habits of a greater part
of the Asian population?
I have always had a thirst for discovery and my curiosity has
always guided me and helped to evolve in my perception of
things.
I fundamentally believe in the value of exchange and
tolerance and the openness it causes. These exchanges are
taking place today on a global scale. Everyone can now
easily access other cultures and a lot of food. I guess this
reflects the evolution of the world. Bread, which is the
symbol of sharing and conviviality, meets with great success,
which comes as no surprise! I have always considered that
breaking bread announced a discreet party: a culinary party
without any distinction among gourmands. If Asia loves our
baguette, it is absolutely consistent and natural!
Dr. Pick Keobandith
President Macron and Eric Kayser
152

If you have a cuting in your hand, 2017, Watercolor
© Lieve Van Stappen
153

ROSE D’ANVERS
INTRODUCING THE PENTAGRAM
DIAMOND & THE MOST STUNNING
ROSE IN THE WORLD
Rose D’Anvers, rose and diamond, stunning symbols
of nature’s talent for creating two of the most
beautiful icons in the universe.
Rose, soft, scented, delicate, alluring, enchanting.
Diamond, brilliant, scintillating, tantalizing, enduring.
Rose D’Anvers was created in Antwerp, for a millennium a
pulsing, pioneering, port city and Europe’s heart of culture,
learning, painting, and printing. For thousands of years
roses and diamonds have captured the imaginations of men
and women and inspired and uplifted their senses.
A rose, superb in its natural beauty and understated
elegance, traces mother natures’ delicate signature of
swirling petals.
A diamond is nature’s maestro of light refraction and fire.
For centuries, sacred, symbolic, interpreter par excellence
of Antwerp’s exquisite craftsmanship, scintillation, and
brilliant light refraction. In a world marked by change
and challenged by disruption, Antwerp’s Rose D’Anvers
connects the eternal truths of integrity, beauty and
resilience and the people who uphold these values.
Rose D’Anvers’ sublime symmetry, symbolizes reciprocal
respect, love and the recognition of each person’s safe
space and security. Rose D’Anvers, a duet of the rose, royal
representative of nature’s floral treasury, and diamond,
peerless pinnacle of nature’s synthesis of heat, pressure and
the volcanic velocity of the primal elements.
Confronted with today’s hijacking of humility, respect
and love by greed, egoism and aggression, Rose D’ Anvers
celebrates and connects those with grace, gratitude and
generosity of spirit.
light, fire and brilliance to achieve the shimmering radiance
of a thousand burning candles on an altar top.
The history of diamonds and the rose serendipitously
crossed when master diamond cutters first pioneered the
rose cut diamond shape. Early milestone in the evolution of
diamond polishing, the rose cut revealed the first hints of
the hidden brilliance in a rough diamond.
Popular in the past and collected by connoisseurs today,
rose cut diamonds represented the state of diamond
polishing knowledge for several hundred years.
Through time and finely polished facets, Antwerp’s master
diamond cutters taught the world to channel the contained,
light energy inside a rough diamond into the calibrated
prismatic poetry of light refraction and reflection.
A diamond’s internal character can only be revealed
through the cleaving, cutting and polishing away of those
parts of the diamond superfluous to achieving optimum
purity, brilliance and light dispersion.
ANTWERP’S DIAMOND HISTORY
154
Antwerp’s master craftsmen perfected the geometry of
gemology, calibrating the angled algorithms of a diamond’s
© Rose D'Anvers

© Rose D'Anvers
Diamond, a metaphor for life’s shaping of man and woman,
only shines and reflects its brilliance after painstaking work
and craftsmanship bring out the inner fire.
Shaping the world as the world shapes us, the polishing of
human character to highlight the fire and brilliance within is
a lifetime passion for anyone wishing to reach the full height
of their potential.
ANTWERP’S COAT OF ARMS
Antwerp’s City fathers long dedicated to tying the city’s
fortunes to the noblest, aspirational qualities, included the
rose in its coat of arms. Thus, the City of Antwerp has
proudly celebrated the rose and the diamond, the latter
most recently through its “Antwerp Diamond Capital since
1447” initiative. Rose D’Anvers is a magical link between
nature and craftsmanship, between the rose and the natural
beauty of the world and, man’s genius for the transformation
of a building block of the universe into splendid, sparkling
diamonds.
CONNNECTING ANTWERP ICONS IN A
CONTEMPORARY SPIRIT
Today, Rose D’Anvers symbolizes the soft-hand spirit of the
rose and the beating diamond heart of Antwerp.
Setting a contemporary standard of Antwerp craftsmanship
and style, Rose D’Anvers fills the space with an aura of
beauty and grace signifying the best of the universe.
An impeccably elegant match of nature’s nurturing and
man’s craftsmanship, Rose D’Anvers celebrates our universe
by offering the natural beauty of an exquisitely presented,
stunning rose, stippled with natural polished diamonds.
THE UNIQUE ROSE D’ANVERS DIAMOND
Drawing on her life experiences to feed her curiosity and
stimulate her interest Rosalie Bogaard has referenced music,
dance, art, design, and culture, to challenge assumptions
and nudge society to a better place. In 2018, paying tribute
to Antwerp Diamond Capital since 1447 and celebrating the
tradition of the rose and rose cut diamonds Rosalie Bogaard
sought out Antwerp’s most talented diamond cutters to
design a new Rose D’Anvers Pentagram diamond cut.
Drawing on Antwerp’s unique diamond technocraftsmanship,
Rosalie Bogaard’s master craftsmen
successfully polished the Pentagram’s spirit, water, fire,
earth and air, onto every Rose D’Anvers diamond.
Now, the Rose d’Anvers Pentagram diamond empowers the
wearer with the alignment of the Pentagram’s life forces.
Set to delight and dazzle and cut and polished to sublime
perfection, each Rose D’Anvers Pentagram diamond is sold
with a personalized HRD Certificate.
The Rose D’Anvers Pentagram is one of the world’s most
desirable diamonds, inspired and polished in Antwerp,
which has transmitted diamond knowledge to the four
corners of the world, for centuries.
The Rose D’Anvers Pentagram diamond is a cut for the age,
reflecting beauty, passion and the magic of life.
155

PEACE MUSEUM AS PART
OF CULTURE OF PEACE
PEACE MUSEUM AS VITAL INSTRUMENT
FOR PROMOTION OF PEACE EDUCATION
AND THE CREATION OF A CULTURE OF PEACE
156
In a magazine dedicated to cultural diplomacy in which the
pursuit of listening to others and of enabling greater personal
understandings of individuals is detailed at great length, it may
seem obvious that the role of diplomacy is to achieve peace.
What then, would be the purpose of a museum dedicated to
peace, one in which the promotion of peace takes centre stage?
What is a culture of peace in a peace museum? A museum
filled with the symbols of peace such as roses and pictures
of doves and hearts? In order to explore the idea of Peace
mu