The Arraiolos Group is an informal meeting of Presidents of parliamentary and semi-presidential European Union member states, held roughly once in a year. A political forum for the heads of state of parliamentary republics and also some semi-presidential republics (as opposed to constitutional monarchies or countries governed by a presidential system) whose role, according to the respective constitutions, may range from being significantly executive to largely ceremonial. It deals with questions and problems concerning the current state and future development of the EU as well as how to approach the challenges of globalisation. [1]
The name is derived from the small Portuguese town of Arraiolos, where the first meeting took place in 2003. Jorge Sampaio, then the President of Portugal, had invited the presidents of Finland, Germany, as well as of soon-to-be EU members Hungary, Latvia and Poland to discuss the consequences of the 2004 enlargement of the European Union and plans for a Constitution for Europe. [2]
Following the 2005 meeting, the seven participating presidents wrote a joint article titled "Together for Europe" about their conception of the European community. It was published on 15 July 2005 by Diena , Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , Gazeta Wyborcza , Público , Helsingin Sanomat , la Repubblica and Der Standard , leading newspapers of the respective countries. [3]
Horst Köhler is a German politician who served as President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the CDU and the CSU, as well as the liberal FDP, Köhler was elected to his first five-year term by the Federal Convention on 23 May 2004 and was subsequently inaugurated on 1 July 2004. He was reelected to a second term on 23 May 2009. Just a year later, on 31 May 2010, he resigned from his office in a controversy over a comment on the role of the German Bundeswehr in light of a visit to the troops in Afghanistan. During his tenure as president, whose office is mostly concerned with ceremonial matters, Köhler was a highly popular politician, with approval rates above those of both Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and later Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The president of Austria is the head of state of the Republic of Austria.
Walter Scheel was a German statesman. A member of the Nazi Party who joined the Free Democratic Party of Germany (FDP) in 1946, he first served in government as the Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development from 1961 to 1966 and later as President of Germany from 1974 to 1979. He led the FDP from 1968 to 1974.
The Weimar Triangle is a regional alliance of France, Germany, and Poland created in 1991 in the German city of Weimar. The group is intended to promote co-operation between the three countries in cross-border and European issues.
HeinzFischer GColIH, OMRI, RSerafO, GCollSE is an Austrian politician who served as the president of Austria from 2004 to 2016. Fischer previously served as minister of science from 1983 to 1987 and as president of the National Council of Austria from 1990 to 2002. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) until 2004, he suspended his party membership as he became president.
The Munich Security Conference is an annual conference on international security policy that has been held in Munich, Bavaria, Germany since 1963. Formerly named the Munich Conference on Security Policy, the motto is: Peace through Dialogue.
Ingo Schulze is a German writer born in Dresden in former East Germany. He studied classical philology at the University of Jena for five years, and, until German reunification, was an assistant director at the State Theatre in Altenburg 45 km south of Leipzig for two years. After sleeping through the events of the night of 9 November 1989, Schulze started a newspaper with friends. He was encouraged to write. Schulze spent six months in St Petersburg which became the basis for his debut collection of short stories 33 Moments of Happiness (1995).
Axel Eduard Fischer is a German politician. He is a member of the CDU and has been a member of the German parliament from 1998 to October 2021, representing Karlsruhe-Land since 2002.
Klaus Scharioth is a former German diplomat. From 2006 to 2011 he served as Germany's ambassador to the United States. Since 2011 he has been dean of the Mercator Fellowship on International Affairs. He is also a Professor of Practice at the Fletcher School at Tufts University and a commentator on relations between Germany and the United States.
The WZB Berlin Social Science Center, also known by its German initials WZB, is an internationally renowned research institute for the social sciences, the largest such institution in Europe not affiliated with a university.
The German Environmental Prize is a government-sponsored award for protecting the environment. Worth €500,000, it is one of the most valuable environmental awards in Europe.
Arraiolos is a town and municipality in the Évora District of Portugal. As of 2021, the municipality had a population of 6,606 people and covered an area of 683.75 square kilometres (264.00 sq mi). The town itself was home to 3,133 residents in the same year. The current Mayor is Silvia Pinto, elected by the Unitary Democratic Coalition.
Joachim Wilhelm Gauck is a German politician who served as President of Germany from 2012 to 2017. A former Lutheran pastor, he came to prominence as an anti-communist civil rights activist in East Germany.
The Bundespräsidialamt is a federal agency of the Government of Germany assisting the President of Germany.
Presidential elections were held in Austria on 24 April 2016, with a second round run-off on 22 May 2016. However, the results of the second round were annulled and a re-vote took place on 4 December 2016.
Max Rendschmidt is a German Olympic canoeist. He represented his country at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and won two gold medals, in K-2 1000 metres and K-4 1000 m events. He also won gold in the K-4 500 metres at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics.
Elke Büdenbender is a German jurist. She is also the wife of Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the current President of Germany.
Anne Spiegel is a German politician of Alliance 90/The Greens. She served as Federal Minister for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth in the cabinet of Chancellor Olaf Scholz since 8 December 2021; she announced her resignation on 11 April and was dismissed by the President on 25 April 2022
Reinhard Schneider is a German business administrator and managing director of the Mainz-based family company Werner & Mertz, which is best known for its Frosch brand. In this position, he focused the company’s sustainability strategy and advocates greater commitment from the business community to climate and environmental protection. Schneider is holder of the German Environmental Prize 2019.
