Belgrade Security Conference 2022

Russia’s aggression on Ukraine and the initiation of a brutal war marks a disastrous yet critical point for Europe in the 21^st century. Amid such circumstances for the entire world, challenges and hesitations in the Southeast European region were replaced by the danger and fear of open aggression – that of authoritarian regimes upon developed and developing democracies. As highlighted by Igor Bandović, Director of the Belgrade Center for Security Policy, “in its final stage, authoritarianism will lead to war, suffering and innocent victims; it is simply a matter of time; when this becomes evident, it is already too late.”

Against such a sobering frame of thought, the Belgrade Security Conference focused on four main topics “War in Ukraine,” “The Future of the EU,” “Democracy and Authoritarianism,” and lastly, “The EU and Regional Security” were addressed in multiple panel discussions throughout the conference. The gathering hosted Nobel Prize Laureates for Peace and other prominent political, academic, and non-governmental representatives working on security and democracy.

Each of the topics was opened by a keynote address from individuals prominent and relevant to the discussions, including Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Vera Jourova, Vice-President of the European Commission, and H.E. Emanuele Glaufret, Head of Delegation of the EU To Serbia. On behalf of Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, the opening remarks to the conference were given by Kirsten Schoenefeld, Directress of FES Serbia.

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Dialogue SOE remains committed in these challenging times to the values of democracy, which need to continue countering authoritarian narratives that have once again proven the damages they are capable of inflicting with the watershed moment that is the aggression on Ukraine.