Feb. 24: chat with the diplomat who negotiated Hungary into the European Union

An informal discussion of relations between the US, Hungary, and the European with the Hungarian diplomat András Kós

When: Friday February 24, 2:00 PM

Where: Sagamore Institute for Policy Research , Third Floor Conference Room 340 West Michigan Street Indianapolis (Historic Landmarks Building)

When I would visit my wife in communist Hungary in 1987 and 1988, I knew it was the most Westerly of the East, but I had no idea that it would be a member of the European Union in just a bit more than a decade. Nor did anyone in the West. That Hungary negotiated its way into the wealthy club of West Europeans is in some measure due to the skillful work of diplomats such as
Kós András (to frame his name in the Magyar style of family name first). Kós is Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Permanent Representation of Hungary to the European Union in Brussels, where he is in charge of political issues (such as EU enlargement to Turkey and Croatia), external relations, economic and financial affairs, justice and home affairs.
Kós has been a critical part of Hungary's push to join the West since before the collapse of communism. He is in Indiana thanks to the IU European Center of Excellence.

If you would like to learn more about Turkey's efforts to follow Hungary's path through th edoor into the EU, you could attend some of the talks about Turkey that are taking place this spring:

• March 8: Hear IUPUI’s Scott Pegg explain where Turkey is headed
• March 21: Listen to Central Asia Productivity Research Center head Harry Lepinske talk about Turkey
• May 3: Talk Turkey with Çiğdem Balım of IU

This is a great opportunity for an informal and off-the-record peek into the rapidly changing European Union. If you would like to attend this event, please contact Pat A. Hasselblad at pat@sipr.org or 317-472-7824

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