Welcome speeches were made by the following honorable speakers of the conference: the President of Georgia George Margvelashvili, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia David Usupashvili, Charge d’Affairs of the U.S. Embassy in Georgia Nicholas Berliner, Ted Whiteside – Acting Assistant Secretary General of NATO for Public Diplomacy. The Conference was opened by the Director of CDDRL at Stanford University – Larry Diamond. He also made a presentation on the Spirit of Democracy – Regional Perspectives and Perceptions. Another honorable keynote speaker of the Conference was Graham H.Stuart Professor of International Relations, Stanford University – Stephen D. Kranser.
The Conference was attended by the experts on economic and security policy issues from the European Union, the region and other strategic partner countries. Among them were: the Ambassador of the European Union – Janos Herman, Head of the EUMM – Kestutis Jankauskas, Senior Director for Human Rights and Human Freedoms at the McCain Institute, former head of the Freedom House – David J. Kramer, former European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy – Stefan Fule.
Among the speakers and participants were senior leaders in the present and previous government, business, academia and civil society. The conference touched upon the issues of freedom, security, prosperity, the role of the U.S, NATO and the EU in the region, Georgia’s place in these processes, etc.
The purpose of the Conference was to share Georgia’s experience in the democratic reforms, as well as to share experience and best practices with democratic leaders in the region and from around the world to transfer and implement these practices in Georgia.
