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Lennart Meri Conference 2023

12-14 May 2023 · Radisson Collection Hotel, Tallinn

Three days packed with insights by distinguished policymakers, analysts, politicians, military officials and academia from around the globe in Tallinn, Estonia. Key foreign and security policy issues discussed mostly from the perspective of the northern and eastern parts of Europe.

Conference Agenda

Agenda

You can watch again the public panel discussions that were not restricted by the Chatham House Rule. Links to the recordings, photo galleries and introductions are available under each discussion.

Read more

Some key messages

Recaps

Articles

Moscow and Swedish NATO Accession

Russia’s geopolitical goals, its overall confrontation with the west, and its war against Ukraine will continue to be key to dimensioning Moscow’s military planning. Its rhetoric and threats are, however, what Russia has left in its arsenal to deter Sweden.

LMC 2024: Let Us Not Despair, But Act

Russian Intelligence and Western Counterintelligence

The recent surge in cases across the west relating to Russian intelligence activities is a bitter reminder — lest anyone should think otherwise — that the Russian intelligence community remains highly active, the country’s challenges in Ukraine notwithstanding.

LMC 2024: Let Us Not Despair, But Act

The Axis of Upheaval: How the Convergence of Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea Will Challenge the US and Europe

One of President Putin’s many miscalculations in his decision to invade Ukraine was his underestimation of the west’s response. Indeed, the US and Europe outperformed what many in the west themselves thought was possible in the run-up to the war. Russia’s aggression set in motion…

LMC 2024: Let Us Not Despair, But Act

Organising for Victory

Today, the United States and its Allies face global challenges. The question is … do we have the political will, industrial capacity, economic leverage, and military capability to overcome those challenges? Can we organise for victory … or will we just kick the can down…

LMC 2024: Let Us Not Despair, But Act

Martin Herem: A NATO Victory Is Not in Question – But the Fight Will Be Ugly

It is trendy to talk about Ukraine or the Russian threat. However, actions speak louder than words. Many processes run exactly the way they did three years ago. Yet today, we are in a hurry. And the enemy should be warded off now. The Commander…

LMC 2024: Let Us Not Despair, But Act

Lennart Meri Lecture 2024: Ukrainian History and the Future of the World by Timothy Snyder

Transcription from the video recording.

LMC 2024: Let Us Not Despair, But Act

Speakers

Alar Karis

President of Estonia

Kaja Kallas

Prime Minister of Estonia

Krišjānis Kariņš

Prime Minister of Latvia

Ingrida Šimonytė

Prime Minister of Lithuania

Timothy Garton Ash

Professor of European Studies at University of Oxford

Margrethe Vestager

Executive Vice-president of the European Commission and Commissioner

Christopher G Cavoli

Commander of the US European Command and Supreme Allied Commander Europe

Fiona Hill

Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow at the Robert Bosch Foundation and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution

Karel Řehka

Chief of Defence of the Czech Republic

Constanze Stelzenmüller

Director of the Center on the United States and Europe and Fritz Stern Chair on Germany and Transatlantic Relations at Brookings Institution
Susan Glasser

Susan B Glasser

Staff Writer at The New Yorker

Greg Yudin

Professor at The Moscow School of Social and Economic Sciences and Visiting Research Scholar at Princeton University

Anna Wieslander

Director for Northern Europe at the Atlantic Council and Secretary General of the Swedish Defence Association

Elina Valtonen

Member of the Finnish Parliament and Vice-Chair of the National Coalition Party

Akiko Fukushima

Senior Fellow at the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research

Thomas Bagger

Ambassador of Germany in Poland

Supporters and Partners

About Lennart Meri Conference

“We can never have too much security,” said President Lennart Meri. To mark his continuing legacy in foreign and security policy thinking, the annual Lennart Meri Conference aims to encourage curiosity and debate, highlight unity and diversity, and foster liberty and democracy.