Greek Association for Atlantic & European Cooperation (G.A.A.E.C.) blogs

17th Symposium Blog

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 12:54:05 +0200

The New Blog for the 17th Symposium

Lets start discussing about the 17th Symposium which will be held in Athens 17-20 of December and its main subject The new strategic concept of NATO.
For now we are using the following blog:
http://www.gaaec.blogspot.com/

NATO Secretary General visits Greece

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:17:01 +0300

NATO Secretary General visits Greece

From August 26th to 27th The NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen visited Athens and met with Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, Minister of Foreign Affairs Dora Bakoyannis and Minister of Defence Evangelos Meimarakis. During the visit, the Secretary General thanked Greece for the contributions to the Alliance's anti-piracy mission in the Indian Ocean, to KFOR and to ISAF.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen: NATO's new Secretary General

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 10:14:36 +0300

Anders Fogh Rasmussen: NATO's new Secretary General

The new Secretary General of NATO, Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, took up his duties on 1st August 2009. Today (August 3rd) it is his first day at NATO HQ.

The official biography of NATO's new Secretary General, as found on NATO website:

Anders Fogh Rasmussen was born in Ginnerup, Jutland, on 26 January 1953. After passing the baccalaureate at Viborg Katedralskole in 1972, he studied economics at the University of Aarhus, graduating (MSc Econ) in 1978. The same year he became member of the Danish Parliament representing the Liberal Party.

The International Institute for Political and Economic Studies (IIPES) 2009 is starting tomorrow!

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:09:30 +0300

The International Institute for Political and Economic Studies (IIPES) 2009 is starting tomorrow!

Tomorrow, July 25th, the International Institute for Political and Economic Studies (IIPES) is starting in Chania, Crete, bringing together 90 students from 26 countries: Greece, USA, Albania, Bosnia and Hercogovina, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kosovo UNMIK, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Montenegro, Palestinian Authority, Romania, Serbia, Syria, Tunisia and Turkey.

New initiative from YATA - Joint research project

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:19:41 +0300

New initiative from YATA - Joint research project

After the success of the first Joint Research Project (JRP), the Executive Board of the Youth Atlantic Treaty Association, in cooperation with the Atlantic Treaty Association is launching the Second JRP Program.

The Initiative aims at: a) contributing to discussion and debate at the ATA/YATA General Assembly in Kiev, October 7-10, 2009; b) reinforcing transatlantic efforts to promote Alliance value among the successor generation.

In 2009, NATO’s 60th anniversary provides a valuable opportunity to reappraise the Alliance’s accomplishments and anticipate the challenges that confront history’s most successful military alliance in the 21st century.

YATA would like to hereby promote the creation of 3 joint research teams, formed by young talented students or professionals, coming from YATA member countries. The team members will work together on one of the three topics listed below, under the supervision of a Tutor (chosen by the Vice-president for Education) and a senior expert (not compulsory). Furthermore, the YATA Board will provide the appropriate communication tools for completing the research.

Prospective candidates are welcome to apply for elaborating on one of the following topics:
• Communicate the outcomes of NATO’s Strategic Concept;
• Atlanticism Beyond Borders;
• Social Media and the Atlantic Community.

The “application packages” are to be sent to jointresearch2009@gmail.com until August 6, 2009. The package should include the following:
• application form (sent out to each YATA chapter via mail);
• CV;
• One page long abstract of the chosen topic (font type: times new roman, font size: 12, one & half spaced);
• a recommendation from the national YATA chapter.

According to the selection criteria, all applicants must fit the following requirements:
• is a member of a national YATA chapter;
• not older than 35;
• has (working or study) experience on the field of the chosen topic;
• writes and speaks fluently in English;
• is planning to participate as an official representative of her/his national YATA Chapter at the General Assembly in Kiev;
Please note that only two delegates per national chapters will be reimbursed in Kiev, and there will not be an exception for JRP participants.
• is willing to coop with her/his JRP paper on a daily basis.

Applicants will be notified about the decision not later than August 9, 2009. Two applicants per topic will be asked to start working on the paper. Each selected applicant will receive the contact details of her/his co-worker and of the Tutor (a YATA member, requested by the Vice-president for Education) responsible for the given topic.

JRP participants will have to submit a project summary by August 26, 2009. The project summary must contain the following information:
• 2 pages long draft of the paper with at least 10 reliable sources;
• a short CV of the senior expert (at least 35 years old, who has teacher and/or researcher of the given topic) asked by the JRP participants to help their project;
• a declaration from the senior expert presented in the project summary – that she or he is willing to give a professional assistance to the project (by August 30, 2009).
Please note that it is not compulsory to have a senior expert.

All JRP papers should be submitted to jointresearch2009@gmail.com by September 27, 2009. Papers have to cover 10-15 pages (font type: times new roman, font size: 12, one & half spaced), citing at least 15-20 sources (please note that each source needs to have a reference in the text). Each paper should have the recommendations of both the Tutor and the senior expert. Besides, each JRP paper needs to have a Power Point version for the presentations before the Kiev GA. Please note that each JRP team shall agree on the person who’s going to present their project.

The Vice-president for Education (together with experienced researchers) will revise the papers and the Power Point presentations, and will send back his suggestions – if necessary – by October 2, 2009.

The finalized versions of the JRP papers’ project summaries (1 page long outline!) and the Power Point presentations should be sent to jointresearch2009@gmail.com by October 5, 2009.

Please note that only the project summaries will be handed out to the attendees at the YATA GA. The JRP presentations would have the role to open the floor for discussions on the given topics.
Thus, a good JRP presentation would:
• supply the audience with enough information to have an overall picture on the topic;
• encourage the audience to debate on the statements delivered, and questions raised by the lecturer.

Nevertheless, JRP papers and presentations should be based on well-founded analysis, and lecturers shall have an adequate knowledge of their subjects!

All attendees will get a chance to reflect on the presented JRPs on an evaluation form, too. This way, JRP participants will have the opportunity to revise their papers based on the suggestions made by the audience, and make a final version of the papers by November 1, 2009.

The papers will be published on the YATA website.

For any other question and for submitting your candidacy, please contact András Hlács at vp-education@atlantic-youth.org or at hlacs.andras.corvinus (Skype), or call the +36-30-676-0947 (mobile phone).

Admiral James Stavridis - first navy admiral and first Greek-American to become NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:18:16 +0300

Admiral James Stavridis - first navy admiral and first Greek-American to become NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR)

On July 2nd, 2009, Admiral James Stavridis became NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) assuming command of Allied Command Operations from outgoing SACEUR, General John Craddock. SACEUR is responsible to NATO’s Military Committee, the highest military authority in NATO, for the overall direction and conduct of military operations for NATO.

The change of command, presided over by NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, marks the first time in NATO history that a navy admiral assumes the post since the position was established in 1951 when General Dwight D. Eisenhower became the first SACEUR. Admiral Stavridis is the sixteenth American officer and the first Greek-American to hold the prestigious post.

His grandfather was an ethnic Greek, who immigrated to the United States in 1910. Admiral Stavridis was born in 1955 in West Palm Beach, Fla., to a military family, and he lived in Greece as a young child while his father, an officer in the Marines, was assigned to the United States Embassy in Athens.

Admiral Stavridis always remained proud for his Greek heritage. Upon receiving AHEPA Medal of Freedom in 2006 in his follow-up letter he wrote: "Thank you for your part in my award of the AHEPA Medal of Freedom…It meant the world to me and my family to be so honored, and made me feel very proud to be a Greek-American.” In his article in New York Post "Row for Freedom: An Ancient lesson and America's heroes today" he commented on his Greek roots and the lessons from Ancient Greece:

"And we think here in the United States that we invented that idea, but actually it goes back to the very roots of democracy. And I'm Greek-American, so I'm allowed to tell this story of how volunteer militaries began.

Russia in the Spotlight

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:16:07 +0300

Russia in the Spotlight

In the last few weeks Russia and its relations with NATO, USA and Europe was constantly in the spotlight of international media.

On March 27, the first meeting of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) at ministerial level for over a year took place on the Greek island of Corfu. NRC was suspended after the conflict in Georgia. NATO's Secretary General said even though the differences regarding Georgia have remained, Nato and Russia would nonetheless resume co-operation on issues such as Afghanistan, drug trafficking and piracy.

NATO's New Strategic Concept: launching a public debate

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 10:58:27 +0300

NATO's New Strategic Concept: launching a public debate

At the Summit in Strasbourg and Kehl on 4 April 2009, NATO Heads of State and Government tasked the Secretary General to develop a new NATO Strategic Concept. The current Strategic Concept was approved at the Washington Summit in 1999.

Dear Friend and Professor Dr. Ioannis Karmokolias has passed away

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:51:11 +0300

Dear Friend and Professor Dr. Ioannis Karmokolias has passed away...

Informal meeting of OSCE foreign ministers in Corfu, Greece

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:45:57 +0300

OSCE Press Release

'Corfu Process' launched to take European security dialogue forward, says OSCE Chairperson

CORFU, Greece, 28 June 2009 - The informal meeting of OSCE foreign ministers on the Greek island of Corfu concluded today with the launch of the "Corfu Process" to tackle European security challenges with concrete steps to restore confidence and prepare the ground for the ministers' next meeting in Athens in December.