On 28-29 August, ALDE Party co-President Ilhan Kyuchyuk attended the 2023 Bled Strategic Forum in Bled, Slovenia. The Forum, with a focus on ‘Solidarity for Global Security’ was an opportunity to meet with other leading politicians, partners and stakeholders to seek innovative solutions to current and future challenges. 

On the margins of the Forum, co-President Kyuchyuk met with Prime Minister of Slovenia Robert Golob and emphasised the unity of the liberal family to tackle shared challenges such as humanitarian aid after the devastating floods in Slovenia. 

It was great to meet Slovene Prime Minister Robert Glob today.

We emphasized the value of European unity 🇪🇺 and the unity within the liberal family to tackle shared challenges.

An EU approach is crucial in supporting Slovenia 🇸🇮 in its efforts to deal with the recent floods. pic.twitter.com/vHhkJoXWuY

— Ilhan Kyuchyuk (@ilhankyuchyuk) August 28, 2023

Co-President Kyuchyuk also met with Edin Forto, leader of ALDE Party member Naša stranka and Minister of Communication & Traffic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and LIBSEEN Coordinator Roman Jakič. Liberals continue to push for the integration of Southeastern Europe countries into the EU and NATO to ensure a stronger, safer and more prosperous region. 

Thrilled to have met @EdinForto at the side-lines of the #BSF2023.

His insights further convince me that the liberal family is not just about ideology, but about charting a path to a country's European future. 🇪🇺 pic.twitter.com/UepaiorUwN

— Ilhan Kyuchyuk (@ilhankyuchyuk) August 29, 2023

European Council President Charles Michel opened the Forum by delivering a keynote speech in which he emphasized the importance of reviving the EU’s enlargement policy and setting out a view for the EU’s path to accept new member states by 2030. 

“The heart of enlargement is in my opinion not about processes, screenings, assessments, negotiations, treaties. The heart of enlargement is about people, about the future of our children, about the fate of Europe. So we need to make sure that we have the hearts of the people with us,” said President Michel. 

“This may be our biggest challenge. This involves explaining the EU, highlighting the benefits, and it’s a choice of society. It also means moving beyond the language of the past to focus on the future. With real political will, we can make both the EU and the future member states ready. Now is the time to be bold, the time to build our larger European future all together.” 

It is now time to tackle the challenge of enlargement.

Both for us in the EU and for our Future Member States. The time is now, we need to act.

Full speech here:https://t.co/K1HdNvT6nY pic.twitter.com/PEO0mmJ3Tw

— Charles Michel (@CharlesMichel) August 28, 2023

The Bled Strategic Forum has evolved into a leading international conference in Central and South-Eastern Europe. Its purpose is to gather participants from various fields with diverse knowledge to offer them a platform encouraging them to express and contrast opinions on modern society and its future.