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]
The 14th meeting of the heads of state of the Arraiolos Group was held in Riga, Latvia in 2018. [4] The 15th meeting was held in Athens, Greece in October 2019. [5] The 16th meeting was held in Rome on 15 September 2021. [6] The 17th meeting was held in Valetta on 6 October 2022 [7]
Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east, Belarus to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Latvia covers an area of 64,589 km2 (24,938 sq mi), with a population of 1.9 million. The country has a temperate seasonal climate. Its capital and largest city is Riga. Latvians belong to the ethnolinguistic group of the Balts and speak Latvian, one of the only two surviving Baltic languages. Russians are the most prominent minority in the country, at almost a quarter of the population.
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 "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.
Heinz Fischer GColIH, OMRI, RSerafO, GCollSE is a former Austrian politician. He took office as President of Austria on 8 July 2004 and was re-elected for a second and last term on 25 April 2010, leaving office on 8 July 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. It is the world's largest gathering of its kind.
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 National Library of Latvia is a national cultural institution under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture of Latvia. Its current main building is known as the Castle of Light. The National Library of Latvia was formed in 1919 after the independent Republic of Latvia was proclaimed in 1918. The first supervisor of the Library was Jānis Misiņš, a librarian and the founder of the Latvian scientific bibliography (1862–1945). The current building was designed in 1989 by noted Latvian-American architect Gunnar Birkerts (1925–2017), who emigrated to the United States and made his career there. It was constructed in the early 21st century and opened in 2014. Today the Library plays an important role in the development of Latvia's information society, providing Internet access to residents and supporting research and lifelong education.
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 municipality in Évora District in Portugal. The population in 2011 was 7,363, in an area of 683.75 km2. The town of Arraiolos has 3,351 inhabitants. The present 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.
Jenny Erpenbeck is a German writer and opera director, recipient of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.
Vic Anselmo is a Latvian singer-songwriter who lives in Bochum, Germany. Starting out as a performer of gothic metal, Vic performed with her own band throughout her whole career amongst co-operations with several other musicians.
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.
Elke Büdenbender is a German jurist, and, since 1995, 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.
