Virtual Event Series #R2EN!

Session 10 (see video below)

Inauguration Day in America: Linking Washington and Berlin

Wednesday, January 20, 2021
4:40 – 8:00 p.m. (CET)

 

America has voted. On January 20, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States. Rarely has a U.S. presidential transition sparked as much attention and concern as the current one. Themed America United, Biden’s inauguration ceremony is intended to mark a new chapter drawing from a core pillar of his campaign in bringing the country together.

 

To conclude our Road to Election Night & Beyond series, 13 experts from the transatlantic community will convene in Berlin to help you make sense of the inaugural process and its implications on both sides of the Atlantic. Join us for two virtual discussions on Inauguration Day and listen in as representatives from key transatlantic institutions and political foundations share their expectations regarding the Biden-Harris administration and the future of the Euro-American bond.

 

John B. Emerson

Chairman, American Council on Germany
Ambassador of the United States to Germany (2013-17)

 

Daniel Benjamin

President, American Academy in Berlin
Ambassador-at-Large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism, U.S. Department of State (2009-12)

 

Warren Marine

Treasurer, American Chamber of Commerce in Germany e.V.
Partner & Head of U.S. Country Practice, KPMG Germany

 

Martin-Sebastian Abel

Board Member, Freundeskreis AmerikaHaus NRW e.V.
Director, MSL Germany

 

Tina Hassel

Head and TV Editor-in-Chief of ARD-Hauptstadtstudio in Berlin

 

Anahita Thoms LL.M.

Board Member, Atlantik-Brücke e.V.
Partner, Baker McKenzie

 

Dr. Meike Zwingenberger

Executive Director, Bavarian Center for Transatlantic Relations

 

Christian Schmidt

President, German Atlantic Association
Member of Bundestag (CDU/CSU)
German Minister of Food & Agriculture (2014-18)

 

Knut Dethlefsen

Representative to the U.S. and Canada, Friedrich Ebert Foundation

 

Michael Link

Board Member, Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom
Member of the German Bundestag (FDP)

 

Mareike Ohlberg

Senior Fellow, Asia Program, German Marshall Fund of the United States

 

Markus Ferber

Chairman, Hanns Seidel Foundation
Member of the European Parliament (CSU)

 

Bastian Hermisson

Executive Director North America, Heinrich-Böll-Foundation Melissa Eddy (invited), Berlin Correspondent for The New York Times

 

Both panels will be moderated by Terry Martin, Senior Anchor for Deutsche Welle News.

Session 6 (see video below)

Beyond Election Day: Transatlantic Media De-Brief

Friday, November 13, 2020
3:00 – 4:30 p.m. (CET)

 

Ten days after Election Day, an international press club will come together in Berlin to discuss the aftermath of the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. Tune in as five leading journalists representing the United States, Germany, Italy, Poland and France comment on possible repercussions on the Euro-American partnership and voice their expectations towards a Biden-Harris administration.

 

Melissa Eddy, Berlin Correspondent for The New York Times

 

Tina Hassel, Head and TV Editor-in-Chief of ARD-Hauptstadtstudio in Berlin

 

Tonia Mastrobuoni, Berlin Correspondent for La Repubblica

 

Wojciech Szymański, Berlin Correspondent for the Polish Section of Deutsche Welle

 

Moderated by: Terry Martin, Senior Anchor for Deutsche Welle News

Session 4 (see video below)

The Future of the Multilateral Order

Friday, October 16, 2020
2:30 pm – 3:40 pm (CET)

 

Robert B. Zoellick, Former President of the World Bank, U.S. Trade Representative & U.S. Deputy Secretary of State

 

Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bank

 

Moderated by: Dr. Stormy-Annika Mildner, Head of External Policy at the Federation of German Industries (BDI)

 

Over the past 75 years, globalization and global governance have been strongholds of universal peace and prosperity. More recently, multilateral institutions struggle to enable shared, fair and effective solutions for crisis phenomena such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. Our moderated discussion will provide an outlook on the future of multilateralism. How can the structures of international cooperation be defended and redesigned? Which existing institutions may remodel the rules of multilateral engagement? And what role do new stakeholders such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank play?

Session 3 (see video below)

Beyond the Campaign Trail: The Future of the American Presidency

Friday, October 9, 2020
3:00 pm – 4:00 pm CET

 

Peter Baker, Chief White House Correspondent for The New York Times and Co-Author of „The Man Who Ran Washington: The Life and Times of James A. Baker III“

 

David Frum, Staff Writer for The Atlantic and Author of „Trumpocalypse: Restoring American Democracy“

 

Moderated by: Vendeline von Bredow, European Business and Finance Correspondent for The Economist

 

Roughly four weeks ahead of Election Day, the world is again focused on the U.S. electoral map. No day passes without pollsters offering their latest take on the most recent numbers and data. But, looking beyond the election on November 3, invites a larger question: No matter whether the next President is named Biden or Trump, what will the future of the American presidency look like? And what role will Democrats and Republicans play in shaping the presidency for the years to come?

Session 2 (see video below)

Knowing Each Other? Mutual Perceptions Across the Atlantic

Wednesday, September 23, 2020
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm CET

 

Dr. Emily Haber, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to the United States

 

John Emerson, Former Ambassador of the United States to Germany, Chairman of the American Council on Germany

 

Moderated by: Dr. David Deißner, Executive Director of the Atlantik-Brücke e.V.

 

Following up on the Year of German-American friendship, this session will take a closer look at the state of transatlantic relations in this election year. More specifically, the two distinguished speakers will discuss how Americans currently perceive their German partners across the Atlantic – and vice versa. What larger trends can we deduce from the current state of transatlantic relations? Are we, in fact, still “wunderbar together”?

Session 9 (see video below)

Why Trade Matters! The Future of Transatlantic Economic Relations

Wednesday, December 9
5:15 – 6:30 p.m. (CET)

 

Businesses invested in transatlantic trade and multilateral trade relations not only create sustainable jobs and economic growth, but also support the urgently needed reliability and stability within the transatlantic partnership. Once president-elect Joe Biden takes office on January 20^th, the future of the trade relationship between the United States and the European Union will be decisively impacted. Will trade barriers and tariffs between the US and the EU be reduced? How can the international trading system be strengthened to enable free and rule-based trade? What could be a transatlantic response to the trade conflict with China? And what are the prospects for a new green economy to tackle climate change?

 

Daniel Andrich, General Manager, American Chamber of Commerce in Germany e.V.

 

Dr. Christina Gommlich, Deputy Head of Berlin Office, Corporate Government Relations, BASF SE

 

Dr. F.- Hans Grandin, CEO, HUESKER Synthetic GmbH and HUESKER Group

 

Peter Riehle, President & CEO, Head of Region AMERICAS, WITTENSTEIN US

 

Welcome remarks by: Frank Sportolari, President, American Chamber of Commerce in Germany e.V.

 

Moderated by: Annett Meiritz, US Correspondent in Washington DC, Handelsblatt, will moderate this discussion.

Session 8 (see video below)

Migration, Flight, and U.S. Immigration Policy under President Biden

Thursday, December 3
7:00 – 8:00 p.m. (CET)

 

At the beginning of 2021, US President-elect Joe Biden will inherit an immigration system that has been dramatically transformed by the Trump administration over the past four years. These transformations include a new series of restrictive asylum policies, the construction of a border wall to Mexico, sweeping green-card limitations, broader deportation priorities, a decimated refugee program, and pandemic-era border restrictions. The Biden-Harris team will have much to contend with in forging pragmatic policies that both protect the US border and honor legal migration to the United States. In this panel discussion, practitioners and experts from the field will discuss what post-Trump immigration policy might look like, and what challenges—political, bureaucratic, and cultural—the Biden administration is likely to face in the coming years.

 

T. Alexander Aleinikoff, University Professor and Director of the Zolberg Institute on Migration and Mobility at The New School (NYC)

 

Roberto Suro, Professor of Journalism and Public Policy at the University of Southern California

 

Moderated by: Daniel Benjamin, President of the American Academy in Berlin

Session 7 (see video below)

Safeguarding Transatlantic Security: A “New Deal” in Euro-American Relations?

Wednesday, November 18
5:30 – 6:30 p.m. (CET)

 

Long cherished as cornerstone of the post-war international order, the transatlantic security architecture has come under intense scrutiny and pressure. NATO is confronted with a variety of complex security challenges, all of which require close transatlantic cooperation. While President Trump regularly points out European omissions with regard to military spending and capability gaps, his distinctive style eroded the trust of U.S. allies in America as a reliable partner. Moving forward, the world is eager to hear from the new President-elect – what can we expect from the incoming Biden administration in terms of foreign policy? How can the U.S. and its allies safeguard transatlantic security cooperation? And what should Europeans be prepared to bring to the table?

 

Heather A. Conley, Senior Vice President for Europe, Eurasia, and the Arctic & Director of the Europe Program at the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS)

 

Thomas Silberhorn, Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry of Defence and Member of Bundestag (CSU)

 

Moderated by: Andrea Rotter, Head of Division Foreign and Security Policy at the Hanns Seidel Foundation

Session 5 (see video below)

Election Day in America: A Pre-Analysis from Berlin

Tuesday, November 3, 2020
6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (CET)

 

Rarely has a U.S. presidential election sparked as much attention, mystification, perplexity, and concern as the 2020 race to the White House – both in the U.S. and abroad. No matter who will emerge as the winner on Election Night (or in the weeks to come), the aftershocks will be felt in Germany, Europe, and around the world.

 

On the eve of the U.S. presidential election, leading representatives of the transatlantic community will come together in Berlin, in order to help you make sense of the events unfolding across the Atlantic. Join us for this timely virtual discussion and listen in as heads of the most important transatlantic institutions and political foundations voice their hopes, expectations, and concerns regarding the immediate election and the future of the Euro-American bond – before the polls close.

 

John B. Emerson

Chairman, American Council on Germany; Ambassador of the United States to Germany (2013-17)

 

Daniel Benjamin

President, American Academy in Berlin;
Ambassador-at-Large and Coordinator for Counterterrorism, U.S. Department of State (2009-12)

 

Frank Sportolari

President, American Chamber of Commerce in Germany e.V.; President, UPS Germany, Austria and Switzerland

 

Dr. Benjamin Becker

Managing Director, AmerikaHaus NRW e.V.

 

Eckart von Klaeden

Chairman, Aspen Institute Germany;
Vice President & Head of External Affairs, Daimler AG

 

Prof. Dr. Michael Hüther

Vice Chairman, Atlantik-Brücke e.V.;
Director and Member of the Presidium, German Economic Institute

 

Dr. Meike Zwingenberger

Executive Director, Bavarian Center for Transatlantic Relations

 

Christian Schmidt

President, German Atlantic Association;
Member of Bundestag (CDU/CSU), German Minister of Food & Agriculture (2014-18)

 

Metin Hakverdi

Member of the Global Atlanticist Network, Friedrich Ebert Foundation; Member of Bundestag (SPD)

 

Alexander Graf Lambsdorff

Member of the Board of Trustees, Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom; Member of Bundestag (FDP); Member of the European Parliament (2004-17)

 

Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff

Vice President and Director of the Berlin Office, German Marshall Fund of the United States; Head of Policy Planning and Speechwriting, Office of the German Federal President (2014-17)

 

Markus Ferber

Chairman, Hanns Seidel Foundation; Member of the European Parliament (CSU)

 

Dr. Ellen Ueberschär

President, Heinrich-Böll-Foundation

 

Moderated by: Annette Riedel

Senior Editor, Deutschlandfunk Kultur

Session 1 (see video below)

Transatlantic Town Hall: A Bipartisan Congressional Perspective on the Future of the Transatlantic Bond

Tuesday, September 1, 2020
5:30 pm – 6:30 pm CET

 

Congressman Ami Bera (D-CA), Chairman of the Asia, Pacific, and Nonproliferation Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; Vice Chair of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, United States House of Representatives

 

Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law of the House Judiciary Committee, United States House of Representatives

 

Moderated by: Rüdiger Lentz, Executive Director of the Aspen Institute Germany

 

Kicking-off the event series, the two Congressmen will provide a bipartisan congressional assessment of the current state of transatlantic affairs. This session will offer a platform for exchange on topics of mutual concern on both sides of the Atlantic and the future of the transatlantic bond. Recent developments focusing on this year’s presidential election and possible repercussions on the Euro-American partnership may further be addressed.