Senator Yves Leterme @ European University
Belgian Foreign Minister speaks at EU Event in Switzerland
European University had the pleasure of welcoming former Belgian Prime Minister and current Foreign Minister, Senator Yves Leterme as the honored guest and speaker at EU’s Spring Cocktail, April 20-21. The event, which was held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Geneva and at Château Maison Blanche, was attended by BBA and MBA students and faculty from EU’s Geneva and Montreux campuses as well as a distinguished group of local politicians, international businessmen, ambassadors and diplomats.
Minister Leterme’s visit to EU Switzerland is part of an extended tour through Europe in order to meet and network with representatives from governments and industry as well as interact with and learn from young people in a variety of multi-cultural settings. EU’s international environment provided the perfect opportunity for just such an event as students shared with Mr. Leterme their ambitions for the future, but more interestingly, the future prospects they face in their own countries.
The student sessions were designed to stimulate innovative thinking in the face of some very complex geo-political problems. Minister Leterme and students engaged in exercises that included the use of “power” words such as education, respect, tolerance, transparency and trust as well as brainstorming drills to help identify the most important concepts that seem to be missing or ignored in today’s discourse.
Senator Leterme’s enlightening discourse also dealt with his outlook for European politics in the year 2009 as well as topics dealing with future challenges of today’s global economic situation and the new geopolitical organization of the world.
After enthusiastic discussions with the charismatic politician, everyone was left with a rather optimistic message regarding the path ahead and the important roles that EU graduates could play in the global economy’s future recovery and reinvention. All in all the presentations provoked a lot of innovative thought and constructive discourse while providing a new perspective through which to view the global landscape.
Born in 1960, Mr. Leterme was nominated Prime Minister of Belgian in 2008 and also served as the government’s Minister of Budget, Institutional Reforms, Transport and the North Sea. He has also served as Minister/President of Flanders as well as the Flemish Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries. Minister Leterme will continue touring Europe to speak with young people and recently published a new book about Rhenan/Anglo-Saxon Capitalism.
European University had the pleasure of welcoming former Belgian Prime Minister and current Foreign Minister, Senator Yves Leterme as the honored guest and speaker at EU’s Spring Cocktail, April 20-21. The event, which was held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Geneva and at Château Maison Blanche, was attended by BBA and MBA students and faculty from EU’s Geneva and Montreux campuses as well as a distinguished group of local politicians, international businessmen, ambassadors and diplomats.
Minister Leterme’s visit to EU Switzerland is part of an extended tour through Europe in order to meet and network with representatives from governments and industry as well as interact with and learn from young people in a variety of multi-cultural settings. EU’s international environment provided the perfect opportunity for just such an event as students shared with Mr. Leterme their ambitions for the future, but more interestingly, the future prospects they face in their own countries.
The student sessions were designed to stimulate innovative thinking in the face of some very complex geo-political problems. Minister Leterme and students engaged in exercises that included the use of “power” words such as education, respect, tolerance, transparency and trust as well as brainstorming drills to help identify the most important concepts that seem to be missing or ignored in today’s discourse.
Senator Leterme’s enlightening discourse also dealt with his outlook for European politics in the year 2009 as well as topics dealing with future challenges of today’s global economic situation and the new geopolitical organization of the world.
After enthusiastic discussions with the charismatic politician, everyone was left with a rather optimistic message regarding the path ahead and the important roles that EU graduates could play in the global economy’s future recovery and reinvention. All in all the presentations provoked a lot of innovative thought and constructive discourse while providing a new perspective through which to view the global landscape.
Born in 1960, Mr. Leterme was nominated Prime Minister of Belgian in 2008 and also served as the government’s Minister of Budget, Institutional Reforms, Transport and the North Sea. He has also served as Minister/President of Flanders as well as the Flemish Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries. Minister Leterme will continue touring Europe to speak with young people and recently published a new book about Rhenan/Anglo-Saxon Capitalism.
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Interview with Belgian Foreign Minister Yves Leterme on his visit to European University Switzerland
What was the goal of your visit to Switzerland?
Since my resignation as Prime Minister and subsequent appointment as Foreign Minister, I have been on “sabbatical leave” from Belgian politics.
Therefore, I wished to undertake various projects. Among other things, I wanted to pay attention to what young people throughout Europe have to say; listen to how they see the crisis and the future. After Switzerland, I will be visiting the Netherlands, Munich, Warsaw, Istanbul, Cambridge and a few Belgian universities.
What was your impression of European University?
I had a good impression of EU. This is a privileged environment for young people who want to study but also learn how to live in an international environment. I found the EU students to be very intelligent.
What did you think of EU students and their ideas?
In addition to their intelligence, they also benefit from a mix of experiences and opinions that enables them to constantly put their own analysis and ideas in perspective. They are privileged and should be aware of it. Unfortunately, the time of my visit was too short to get to know them better.
What is the outcome of your visit to Switzerland?
Thanks to the good preparation of Dr. Craen and his team, I had a highly interesting schedule. First, there were the meetings with the students. Then, I had the chance to meet some cantonal political leaders and many businessmen and women. This also allowed me to have a better view of the economical situation of Switzerland.
Additional comments
I am very grateful for the opportunity I had to meet the European University network and community. I would like to pursue this collaboration in some way.
