Guest speech: Ambassador of the State of Israel, H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On

As a continuation of the Middle-East guest lectures series, the Export Study program’s Chair for International Law and Global Political Studies, Prof. Anis Bajrektarevic invited H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On, Ambassador of the State of Israel in Vienna, to give a public lecture to IMC Export students.

After a warm welcome and short introduction by Prof. Bajrektarevic, H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On opened his lecture by giving an historical overview on the creation of the State of Israel, putting an emphasis on the still ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict and the current threats of Iran. Furthermore, H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On talked about the State of Israel today, highlighting their rapidly-developing high-tech and service sector. The lecture was concluded with a short movie and additionally the students of the IMC had the unique opportunity to address further questions to the Ambassador.

H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On was born in 1952 in Israel. He served as a soldier in the Yom Kippur War and studied afterwards International Politics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He worked as a diplomat in Washington D.C. and Germany and as an ambassador in Switzerland. Before becoming ambassador in Vienna, he was Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem and in charge for media and public relations.

The guest lecture of H.E. Ambassador Aviv Shir-On was the 94th event, and the 4th in the so-called Middle East Series, organized under the auspices of the Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic.

Text provided by: Arianisa M. (EXP 2009)
Photo: Max H. (EXP 2009)

Guest speech: Ambassador of Norway, H.E. Mr. Jan Peterson

As the opening in-house lecture for this semester, on the 2nd of November 2011 the IMC Export Department had the honor to welcome the 4th Guest from the far North, H.E. Mr. Jan Peterson, current Ambassador of Norway to Austria and the Vienna-based IOs, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and former National Chairman of the Conservative Party, for a guest speech under the auspices of the Chair for International, Legal and Global Political Studies by Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic.

After a warm welcome and brief introduction given by the Chairman Bajrektarevic, H.E. Ambassador Peterson opened his absorbing speech in the historic Baroque hall, by briefly introducing Norway in general, its similarities/differences with Austria, Norway’s relationship to the EU and its role in the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO).

Most of the time, however, was spent on the Nordic/Baltic cooperation, where H.E. Peterson gave us a very informative and comprehensive overview of the current Nordic and North Pole issues (including the Barents Sea).

Moreover, H.E. Ambassador Peterson touched the topic of Norway being a peace broker, talking about the Israeli/Palestinian peace-talks and the relative success of the Oslo accord in 1993, but also about the failure in peace negotiations during the Sri Lanka peace building mission.

The official part of this extraordinary event was closed with a very lively Q&A session and a family photo. Afterwards the students had the unique opportunity to address further questions to H.E. Ambassador Peterson and enjoy the very friendly, relaxed and familiar atmosphere.

The guest lecture of H.E. Ambassador Jan Peterson was the 91st event, and the 4th in the so-called Nordic Series, organized under the auspices of the Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic. The next in-house event will take place on the 15th November 2011, when Prof. Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Avis Shir-On, the Israeli Ambassador to Austria.

Text: Katharina K. (EXP 2009)
Photo: Max H. (EXP 2009)

Guest speech of H.E. Dr. Wilfried Luetkenhorst

UNIDO Managing Director on global mega-trends affecting industrial development

As a follow-up to previous study visits to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) at the Vienna International Centre, Dr. Wilfried Luetkenhorst, Head of the Strategic Research, Quality Assurance and Advocacy Division of the Organization, visited the IMC on 15 April 2001 to deliver a speech on global trends that impact industrial development and power shifts around the globe.

Director Luetkenhorst opened his speech by pointing to the economic power shift the world is experiencing starting from an historic perspective. As much as the 19th century was dominated by England and the 20th century by the USA, the 21st century will see the rise of China. In other words, he stated that as much as the 19th century was European and the 20th century was American, the decades to come will be Asian. The centre of gravity is seen as shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from the West to the East. Mr. Luetkenhorst continued by pointing on the rise of the so-called emerging economies (BRIC countries, South Africa, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Mexico) as major global players, both economically and politically. Statistics on production, export, energy consumption or even foreign currency reserves reveal clearly that the fastest growth is taking place outside the OECD. However, he reminded the students of the dark side of the success story of these countries: more than 70% of the poor live in middle-income countries.

Another mega trend affecting industrial development mentioned in the speech refers to population growth, which is primarily taking place in developing countries. With rising populations, those countries experience heavy migration to urban areas and rising pressure on natural resources, which cause military and civil conflicts. Finally, Mr. Luetkenhorst referred to climate change and organized crime as other key factors which heavily impact economic growth and industrial development globally. Concluding his speech, Mr. Luetkenhorst provided a short overview of the UN system and UNIDO’s core functions and mandate.

Professor Anis Bajrektarevic, chair and host of this event, used this opportunity to inform the students about internship possibilities at UNIDO. Dr. Luetkenhorst explained that the internship programme has a duration of minimum three and maximum six months and is, at this moment, still unpaid. In order to be eligible for the programme, students need to be at an advanced state of their studies and formally apply online at www.unido.org/index.php?id=o82311.

The final part of the session was reserved for questions by the audience. Amongst others, students were interested to learn more about the importance of factoring in inflation into a country’s GDP growth calculations, industrial development and innovation in African countries, and UNIDO’s involvement in WTO negotiations. With a view to giving the audience an idea of how the presented trends and subjects translate into on-the-ground technical assistance, Ms. Boesenhofer (IMC graduate, currently consultant for UNIDO’s Clusters and Business Linkages Unit) presented one project experience targeting the automotive component supply chain in South Africa and current initiatives in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

Subsequent to the formal speech and the exchange session, students embraced the opportunity to informally ask specific questions about UNIDO’s work and explore options to write diploma theses on subjects that are of interest to the Organization. Dr. Luetkenhorst expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to interact with IMC students and lecturers in a stimulating atmosphere, and for the keen interest of the university in international development issues. To learn more about the UNIDO’s functions and thematic priorities, please visit the following website: www.unido.org

This was the 88th event organized by the Chair for International law & Global Political Studies (and 27th OUN- related). The next in-house event will take place on 12th of May, when professor Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Cardinal Prof. Dr. Christoph Schönborn, President of the Austrian Bishop's Conference in highly topical discussion on “Morality, Spirituality – the human dimension of sustainability”.

Text: M.B. (rev. A.B.)
Photos: Katrin F.

Guest speech of the CEO of Infineon, Ms. Mag. Monika Kircher-Kohl

The “ASEAN Export Experts” series has made a successful continuation with Mag. Dr. h.c. Monika Kircher-Kohl, CEO of Infineon Technologies Austria AG on 8th April 2011. Chairperson for International Law Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic kindly organized this event and welcomed our guest together with Rector Ms. Eva Werner, Export Program Director Prof. Schwand, fellow program professors and large audience of students.

Before the presentation started Prof. Bajrektarevic described the company Infineon as one of the most vibrant Austrian Export-oriented companies, well known in Asia (as the company profit is over 40% originating from Asian theater). By stating: Asian ruling mantra is opposite from the Western mantra: let’s make a business and eventually become friends. Asians say: let firstly become friends and then we can do any business together, prof. Bajrektarevic gave the floor to the charismatic and impressive speaker Ms. Kircher-Kohl.

The Infineon CEO gave the comprehensive insight into the world of the important semiconducting industry (marked as one of the essential industries by the EU Commission). To give us an idea it was mentioned that 10% of European GDP is generated by Infineon and its customers taken together. Infineon is a fast growing business which closely moves with the macroeconomic cycles. Then the students learned more about the 3 areas Infineon focuses: energy efficiency, mobility and security.

Secondly Mag. Dr. Kircher-Kohl spoke about the employee policy. Here the key message was innovation and culture. She mentioned several examples and challenges Infineon faced in the past, is currently facing and will face in the future (e.g. the integration of foreign employees and their families, dealing with the crisis). In her opinion the key factors for success are openness, innovation, openness for failure and sometimes risk taking.

Afterwards students embraced the opportunity to informally ask specific questions and exchange experience about working in the ASEAN region. Ms. Kircher-Kohl answered questions thoroughly, turning also to Spanish language when asked by the exchange students from Mexico. The Infineon CEO was impressed by the number of our students who traveled to, studied and worked in the ASEAN countries in general, especially to Malaysia, as this is the country were the mayor Infineon overseas plants are located. The weather allowed the family picture to be taken in the beautiful garden. This Guest Lecture was the 86th event organized under the auspices of the International Law Chair Prof. Bajrektarevic.

Links:
Introduction of Infineon
Homepage of Infineon

Text: Theresa Z. (rev. A.B.)
Photos: Katrin F.

Guest speech of the Ambassador of Hungary, H.E. Mr. Vince Szalay-Bobrovniczky

As a continuation of the EU series of the IMC Export, Chairperson for Intl. Law Prof. Bajrektarevic invited the current holder of the EU Presidency, the Hungarian ambassador to Austria, H.E. Mr. Vince Szalay-Bobrovniczky to give a public lecture on 17th March 2011.

The honorable guest (and his assistant Ms. Veronika Kaszás, the Embassy EU Attaché) was warmly welcomed by Prof. Bajrektarevic, who then commented shortly on his personal relation to Hungary. The ambassador started his presentation with reminding his audience about past relations of formerly united Austria and Hungary, and their at the present day intensive political, cultural and economic relations. Subsequently a short film about Hungary was shown to give the audience fascinating impressions of this country.

The presentation with the highly interesting heading “Strong Europe with a human touch”, which is actually the motto of Hungary’s EU-presidency, introduced firstly the deeper meaning of the motto itself. Thus, the European Union has currently to deal with a lot of pressure coming from various issues such as the currency-crisis with Ireland and Greece. It should handle these problems strongly, nevertheless the human touch should be kept and therefore one key goal of the Hungarian presidency is to “bring people closer to the Union”.

In the course of the presentation the four most important priorities of Hungary during its presidency were outlined, including the following topics. Firstly, growth and social inclusion are a central objective of His Excellency. Currently, the Europe 2020 – strategy is developed, which promotes employment and job creation, as well as facilitating learning programs. Secondly, Europe should become “stronger”. His Excellency focused on highly interesting thoughts about energy-strategies of the whole EU and Hungary in particular. Mentioned has been the European Danube Strategy in relation with Krems, as a city located at the Danube, and other aspects of renewable forms of energy such as wind. The ambassador emphasized the importance of nuclear energy for Hungary, as a country depending on this form of energy generation.

Furthermore, in relation to the key phrase “a union closer to its citizens” has the enlargement of the Schengen-area been discussed by His Excellency. He referred to the need of a political compromise such as a partial extension of the Schengen-area in context with a possible join of Rumania and Bulgaria. At the end of the presentation have the efforts of the EU on the Libyan crisis been revealed. These are the non-fly-zone, the freezing of funds and economic resources of the Gaddafi-clan, and financial help of € 30 million to Libya and neighbouring countries.

The official part of the ambassador’s visit was closed with a family photo and many thanks of Mr. Anis for the excellent presentation and for the interesting links given by His Excellency, for example www.andrassyuni.hu. Additionally, IMC students had the possibility to discuss and ask questions, which His Excellency would answer most comprehensively and interestingly. The Ambassador closed with the wish to have more exchange between Hungary and Austria, also as a study-destination, and some recommendations what to look for when going on holiday to Hungary.

This Guest Lecture was the 85th event organized under the auspices of the International Law Chair and prof. Bajretarevic. The following event of the Chair is a visit to the Europe Haus in Vienna planned for 18th April. The next in-house public lecture will be held on 8th April 2011, when professor Bajrektarevic is hosting Ms. Mag. Monika Kircher Kohl, CEO of Infineon Austria.

http://www.eu2011.hu/
http://www.mfa.gov.hu/


Text: Raffaela F. (rev. A.B.)

Guest speech: Ambassador of Laos, H.E Mr. Khamkheuang Bounteum

As a continuation of the ASEAN guest-lecture series, the IMC Export under the auspices of the Chair for International Law and Global Political Studies, Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic invited H.E. Mr. Khamkheuang Bounteum, Ambassador of Laos to Austria and Vienna-based IOs.

H.E. Mr. Bounteum arrived with two of his counselors, who actively supported the Ambassador´s speech. After a very hearty welcome and an introduction by Prof. Bajrektarevic (who also made a brief reference on the international women day with some flowers brought for the female students), the ambassador guest started with an outline of his speech which would be focusing on the main question why Laos is going to be THE place to be and why it is profitable to invest in Laos.

A basic overview Laos by the Ambassador´s counselor followed, pointing out the most important facts of the country. The counselor went on with the current major infrastructure projects and finished with a brief introduction to Economic and Industrial Zones in Laos and other facilities.

H.E. took over, listing their achievements in the recent years of maintaining political and social order and then presenting their ambitious plans and strategies for the future including full integration into the ASEAN community by 2015 and entering the ASEAN Free Trade Area. As Excellency Bounteum stated; the country is on his way from a “land locked” to a “land linked” country.

In the last part of this 2-hour speech, Mr. Bounteum talked about the relations with Europe and particular with Austria. He finished by presenting Laws on Investment Promotion, which showed that the country is making a big effort to be an attractive place to invest.

The lecture was closed with a Q&A session, where Ambassador answered all questions about topics like educational system, their main focus within the ASEAN community and their export issues, in a very competent and kind way.

Summing up, this lecture wasn´t to be missed as H.E. Mr. Bounteum provided a very deep and interesting insight into Laos; a country where dynamic is taking place.

This Guest Lecture was the 84th event organized under the auspices of the Chairman Bajrektarevic (and the 7th from ASEAN series). The next in-house event will take place on 17th March 2011 when Prof. Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Mr. Vince Szalay-Bobrovniczky, Ambassador of Hungary (EU Series).

Photos: Anton S. & Kathy B.
Text: Maria W. (rev. A.B.)

Guest speech: Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, H.E. Ali De Jesus Uzcategui Duque

At the occasion of 200 years of Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and as a continuation of the IMC Ambassador Series of the IMC Export Department, under the auspices of the Chair of International, Legal and Global Political Studies, Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic invited H.E. ALÍ DE JESÚS UZCÁTEGUI DUQUE, Ambassador of Venezuela to Austria and Vienna-based IOs, to hold a guest lecture for university fellows.

Chairman Bajrektarevic warmly welcomed H.E. Ambassador by pointing out that his visit constituted a premiere in the IMC Ambassador Series. Even though a couple of previously visiting ambassadors also stem from a military background H.E. was the first general to address a speech to IMC students.

In his introduction Mr. Bajrektarevic furthermore emphasized the focus on openness of this series of events. By pointing out the mixed feelings Venezuela faces in the EU he underlined the importance of giving “out- of mainstream guests” the opportunity to share a view from their perspective with students and thus broadening their horizon and fostering a comprehensive understanding of international affairs.

Under the motto “Venezuela- Una alternetiva posibile” H.E. opened his speech, throughout which he gave a comprehensive insight into the nation’s plans for the years from 2007 to 2013, which are supposed to foster the development of “the Socialism of the 21st century” in Venezuela.

Since the speech turned out to be richer in content than expected the official question and answer session unfortunately had to be cancelled. Nevertheless, after bringing the official part to an end by posing for a family picture, the ambassador further stayed in the baroque Piaristen hall in order to willingly address questions from students.

As a farewell token of appreciation Prof. Bajrektarevic presented H.E. with a collection of the Kremser wine, a heritage of the region’s rich wine culture.

This Guest Lecture was the 83th event organized under the auspices of the Chairman Bajrektarevic. The next in-house event will take place on 8th March 2011 when Prof. Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Mr. Khamkheuang Bounteum, the Ambassador of Laos.

Photos: Venezuelan embassy
Text: Sebastian R. (rev. A.B.)

The script of the speech of H.E. Ali De Jesus Uzcategui Duque can be found here.
The presentation of H.E. Ali De Jesus Uzcategui Duque can be found here.

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