On April 19, 2013, The European Institute awarded The Honorable Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and former President of the Eurogroup the Institute's Transatlantic Leadership Award in recognition of his unique and lasting contributions to the European Project and European-American Relations.

Click here to read Prime Minister Juncker's remarks.

On April 18, 2013, The European Institute held a discussion about prospects and challenges of Lithuania’s upcoming presidency of the Council of the European Union with Rimantas Šadžius, Minister of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania. Minister Šadžius addressed the prospects of Lithuania’s entry into the Eurozone, the formation of the European Banking Union, and the importance of reaching agreement on the EU’s Multi-Annual Financial Framework. Oliver Moss, Director of Global Government Division at Bank of America, moderated the lively discussion and Q&A session that followed the speech. This event was generously hosted by Bank of America.

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One institution, the European Central Bank (ECB)  is emerging from the euro debt crisis with its powers  substantially enhanced.   The ECB was set up in the mid-1990s as the first step toward a common currency.     Only since the crisis in 2009 has the ECB  used some of the more powerful grants of authority it received at its creation.  New proposals unveiled by the European Commission in September 2012 further extend the Frankfurt-based ECB’s domain. The ‘banking union’ legislative package, details of which are still subject to haggling in  the European Parliament and Council of Ministers, extends the ECB  mandate beyond the realm of monetary policy by putting it in charge of active supervision of  6,000 banks throughout the eurozone.  If the legislation passes, as looks likely, the ECB will issue operating permits for banks, investigate their activities, and potentially dismantle them.

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On November 30, 2012, The European Institute held a special discussion with The Honorable Danuta Hübner, Member of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Chair of the Parliament’s Committee on Regional Development and former European Commissioner for Regional Policy. Mrs. Hübner discussed the myths of the European economic crisis and detailed what government institutions, particularly the European Parliament, are doing to resolve the crisis.

On June 6, The European Institute, in partnership with the Embassy of Portugal, welcomed The Honorable Paulo Portas, Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs, to a breakfast discussion on Portugal’s perspective of the political and economic climate in Europe.  Speaking just days after the receiving the fourth positive evaluation of Portugal’s economic recovery program from the EU, the ECB and the IMF joint mission, Minister Portas detailed strategies for further improving his nation’s economic health and strengthening the European Union.