{"id":41496,"date":"2025-11-18T17:51:18","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T15:51:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/?page_id=41496"},"modified":"2025-11-19T14:51:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T12:51:20","slug":"speakers","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/summit\/summit-2025\/speakers\/","title":{"rendered":"Speakers"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Speakers<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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European Values Summit 2025<\/a><\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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L\u00e9onie Allard, France<\/h2>

L\u00e9onie Allard is a visiting fellow at the Atlantic Council\u2019s Europe Center, currently in residence from the French Ministry of Armed Forces. Before her current role, Allard worked for the Ministry of Armed Forces\u2019 Directorate General for International Relations and Strategy. There, she served at the Defense Strategy Directorate on power competition and hybridity focusing on the Indo-Pacific. She was particularly involved in fostering the US-France defense talks on these issues. Before that, she served at the French embassy in Beijing for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on energy issues and at NATO in Brussels. She completed traineeships at the Council of the European Union in Brussels and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Vienna.\nAllard holds a MA in European affairs from Sciences Po Paris. She also pursued studies at the School of African and Oriental Studies in London and Fudan University in Shanghai.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Nan Lwin Yadanar Aung, Myanmar\/Thailand<\/h2>

Nan Lwin Yadanar Aung is the Program Head of China Studies at ISP-Myanmar, where she leads research on China\u2019s policies and actions in Myanmar, focusing on ethnic conflict dynamics, the conflict economy, and resource exploitation. Her work examines how China\u2019s regional architecture and economic expansion in Myanmar affect local communities, internal armed conflicts, peace processes, and regional initiatives. She holds a Master of Journalism degree from the University of Hong Kong and has over 13 years of experience as an editor and reporter covering political and socio-economic issues in Myanmar, with a focus on China\u2019s involvement. She has received multiple journalism awards, including the National Press Award in 2012 for her reporting on Myanmar-U.S. relations.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Reinhard B\u00fctikofer, Germany<\/h2>

Reinhard B\u00fctikofer served as Member of the European Parliament (EP) 2009-2024, focussing on foreign policy, trade policy and industrial policy. He chaired the EP's China delegation 2019-2024. He held the position of European Greens' Co-chair 2012-2019.\nB\u00fctikofer co-founded the Interparliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) and is co-convener of IPAC's Legislator-Expert Forum. He is a Non-resident Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), a Senior Adviser at the European Policy Centre (EPC), and co-chairs the German-Taiwanese Dialogue Platform (DTDP).\nBefore being elected to the EP B\u00fctikofer had served as German Green Party Co-Chair 2002-2008, as Secretary General 1998-2002, as Member of the Baden-W\u00fcrttemberg State Parliament 1988-1996 and as Heidelberg City Councillor 1984-1988.\nB\u00fctikofer, born 1953 in Mannheim, grew up in Speyer and spent one year as a high school student in Kenosha, WI. He studied philosophy, history and some sinology at Heidelberg University.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Jaap van Etten, the Netherlands<\/h2>

Jaap van Etten is the Co-founder and CEO of Datenna, leading the company with a strategic vision to address the challenges posed by China\u2019s technological ambitions. As former Dutch diplomat serving as Attach\u00e9 for Science & Technology, Jaap has dedicated nearly two decades to tracking China\u2019s techno-economic development, with a focus on fields ranging from AI and biotech to nuclear energy and advanced materials.\nLiving and working in China for ten years, Jaap has been at the forefront of reporting on the implications of China\u2019s aggressive pursuit of technology. In 2014, he foresaw the need for the Western world to prepare for investment screening and develop strategies to mitigate the risks associated with technology transfer and Chinese statecraft. This insight led him to establish Datenna in 2017, specializing in Chinese OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) for techno-economic intelligence.\nBefore his diplomatic career, Jaap worked at a Dutch search engine, adding a robust technological foundation to his expertise in technology policy. He is frequently interviewed by global newspapers on matters of Chinese statecraft. Jaap holds a BSc in Computer Science and an MSc in Technology Policy.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Thorsten Geissler, Bulgaria\/Germany<\/h2>

Attorney-at-Law, State Legislator, Schleswig-Holstein (1987-2004), Senator and Second Deputy Mayor Hanseatic City of L\u00fcbeck (2004-2010), Director Rule of Law Programme South East Europe, Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation (2010-2016), Director Bulgaria Office, Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation (2016-2022).<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Dr. Dren G\u00ebrguri, Kosovo<\/h2>

Dren G\u00ebrguri, Ph.D., is a lecturer at the University of Prishtina, Kosovo, and a Fulbright scholar. His research agenda is at the intersection of disinformation, journalism, artificial intelligence, and political communication. He serves as the Associate Editor at the Central European Journal of Communication. G\u00ebrguri has published four books, four book chapters, 18 scientific articles, and dozens of op-eds in the field of media. Some of the op-eds are translated into around 10 languages, including English, German, French, Russian, Japanese, etc. His personal blog is www.drengerguri.com<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Signe Gilen, Norway<\/h2>

Special Envoy for Women, Peace and Security, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs\nSigne Gilen is the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs\u2019 Special Envoy for Women, Peace and Security. She brings more than twenty years of professional experience from the Middle East and North Africa, with extensive work in Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and South Sudan. Her thematic expertise includes gender analyses, inclusive peace processes, and peace agreements.\nFrom 1992 to 2010, she covered the Israeli\u2013Palestinian conflict in various capacities, including as a researcher, as Head of the People-to-People Secretariat, and as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She subsequently served as Deputy Head of Mission at the Norwegian Embassy in Juba, South Sudan, followed by three years as Deputy Head of Mission in Riyadh, where she held primary responsibility for Yemen.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Dr. William Hurst, United Kingdom\/Unites States<\/h2>

William Hurst is Chong Hua Professor of Chinese Development in the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (FAMES) and Co-Director at the Centre for Geopolitics. At the Centre for Geopolitics, he coordinates many aspects of research, activities, and events, especially on the Indo-Pacific and Global Strands. His own research in this area is especially concentrated on Chinese foreign policy, international relations, and evolving role in the world, as well as the broader politics of the South China Sea and Southeast Asia in general.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Magdalena Jakubowska, Poland<\/h2>

Magda is the Vice President of the Res Publica Foundation, a Warsaw-based think tank behind Visegrad Insight - CEE analysis and media platform. She drives EU & security strategy, champions foresight in policy, and launched #WomenAreNATO to advance gender equality in defense. With experience in Poland, the U.S. & transatlantic projects, she sparks Central European perspective to debates on Europe\u2019s future in media and public forums.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Marcin Jerzewski, Taiwan\/Poland<\/h2>

Marcin Jerzewski is the Head of the Taiwan Office of the European Values Center for Security Policy. He also serves as an analyst contributing to the Center\u2019s research on Taiwan and the broader Indo-Pacific region. Concurrently, he is also a contributor to the China Observers in Central Eastern Europe (CHOICE) platform of the Association for International Affairs (AMO). His previous professional experience includes work at the Taiwan NextGen Foundation, the Taipei City Government, the Polish Office in Taipei, and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, DC. Jerzewski delivered expert briefings on Taiwan\u2019s domestic politics and foreign policy to officials of the Legislative Yuan, the Ministry of National Defence of the Republic of Lithuania, and NATO. He is also a frequent commentator on the politics and international relations of Taiwan, with his analyses cited in outlets including Al Jazeera, BBC, The Economist, and Yomiuri Shimbun, among many others. A sinologist and political scientist, Jerzewski was a Ministry of Education Taiwan Fellow in the International Master\u2019s Program in International Studies at the National Chengchi University and studied at the University of Richmond and the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Dr. Yuka Kobayashi, United Kingdom\/Japan<\/h2>

Dr. Yuka Kobayashi is senior lecturer (associate professor) of China and international politics at SOAS, University of London and co-editor for the China Quarterly Journal. She is a British Academy Global Innovation Fellow in DGAP\u2019s Center for Geopolitics, Geoeconomics, and Technology (till end of 2025). Kobayashi\u2019s research examines Chinese investments and link this to broader questions related to China and world order\/disorder. She has advised various governments and international organizations on these issues: she was appointed as specialist advisor to the UK government in 2021 and served as an advisory board member of Stiftung Asienhaus from 2019 to 2021.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Dr. Tom\u00e1\u0161 Kope\u010dn\u00fd, Czechia<\/h2>

A leading figure of the Czech ammunition initiative and Ukraine reconstruction efforts, former Deputy Defense Minister with more than a decade of experiences in defence and defence industrial agendas, Tomas Kopecny has been coordinating Czech support for Ukraine also in its humanitarian and reconstruction aspects since January 2023. For his contribution in helping Ukraine, Tomas has received Order of Merit in 2022 and Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise in 2024 from the President of Ukraine.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Zuzana Ko\u0161kov\u00e1, Czechia<\/h2>

Zuzana Koskova is a sinologist with experience in diplomacy, management of research and science, event management, social media or cloudcomputing. She joined the EVC in February 2023 as the senior program coordinator of the Red Watch program, since April 2023 she has been the Head of the program.\n\nDuring the Czech presidency of the Council of the EU (2022) she served at the Czech MFA where she also completed the Diplomatic Academy program. Previously, she worked at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University in management of science and innovation and as a foreign students coordinator.\n\nShe graduated from MA program Modern China Studies at Freiburg University (Germany), bachelor program Sinology at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University in Prague and Humanities at the Faculty of Humanities, CU in Prague. Her research interests are Chinese media, censorship and propaganda.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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