After the successful debut of the 2023 WSF Report, the Warsaw Security Forum has decided to dedicate the 2024 report edition to mapping out the Weimar Triangle initiative between France, Germany and Poland and discussing the format’s role in shaping the future of EU affairs.
"The Weimar Triangle initiative, which had been overlooked for years, has recently seen a resurgence of interest in Warsaw, Paris, and Berlin. As representatives of three significant, yet diverse EU members align on the most pressing issues, they could serve as a model for others, helping to advance much-needed reforms within the EU. The goal is not to impose a direction, but rather to demonstrate a cooperative approach that could inspire broader consensus across the EU." - writes Prof. Katarzyna Pisarska, Chair of the Warsaw Security Forum.
As the WSF program takes a closer look at the future of the EU under the theme #ThinkingEuropeAnew, the aspiring role of the presented report is to shape the debate on the cooperation opportunities within the format for a renewed European project. Hence the title: "Pushing the EU agenda forward with the Weimar Triangle".
The main part of the report is divided into three thematic areas: Foreign Policy, Defence, and Energy & State Resilience. Each area identifies two advocacy causes for initiatives that could mobilise cross-party support and serve as foundations for more unified policies in areas where the EU currently lacks capacity and needs stronger agency. As the final recommendation, the report proposes creating an International Weimar Fund, which would galvanise cooperation between the three states and ensure the long-term sustainability of the project.
The report is a result of the work of over 25 French, German and Polish members of parliament and experts, supported by the Casimir Pulaski Foundation’s team.
The Report was officially presented to Ministers for European Affairs of the Weimar Triangle - Adam Szłapka of Poland, Anna Lührmann of Germany, and Benjamin Haddad of France - during their sideline meeting at the Warsaw Security Forum on October 2nd, 2024.
Meet the Authors
Foreign Policy Group
Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski
Secretary of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Poland
Helene Conway-Mouret
Vice President of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, France
Arnaud Danjean
Special Advisor to the Prime Minister (2024), Member of the European Parliament (2009-2024), France
Benjamin Haddad
Minister Delegate for European Affairs, Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, France
Anton Hofreiter
Member of the Bundestag, Chair of the Committee on European Affairs, Germany
Paweł Kowal
Member of the Polish Sejm, Government Plenipotentiary for Polish-Ukrainian Development Cooperation, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Poland
Dietmar Nietan
Member of the Bundestag, Coordinator of German‑Polish Intersocietal and Cross‑Border Cooperation, Germany
Group Leader
Prof. Katarzyna PISARSKA, Chair, Warsaw Security Forum
Leading Analyst
Bartlomiej E. NOWAK, Resident Senior Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Defense Group
Bogdan Klich
Senator, Chair of Foreign Affairs and EU Committee, Senate, Poland
Lt. Gen. Krzysztof Król
Chief of Staff of Allied Joint Force Command (2020-2023), Brunssum
Claudia Major
Head of the Research Division on International Security, German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Germany
Rolf Nikel
Vice President, German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), Germany
Paweł Poncyljusz
Poseł na Sejm IV, V, VI i IX kadencji (2001–2011, 2019–2023), wiceminister gospodarki (2006–2007)
Lt. Gen. Jürgen-Joachim von Sandrart
Commander Multinational Corps Northeast, Germany
Group Leader
Tomasz SMURA, Member of the Board, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Leading Analyst
Sebastian CZUB, Resident Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Resilience: Energy & Climate Group
Klaus Dieter-Borchardt
Senior Research Fellow, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, Germany
Marc-Antoine Eyl-Mazzega
Director, Center for Energy & Climate, IFRI, France
Adam Guibourgé-Czetwertyński
Undersecretary of State, Ministry of Climate and Environment (2020-2023), Poland
Michał Kurtyka
Chair of the Energy Security and Climate Track, Warsaw Security Forum, Minister of Climate and Environment (2019-2021), Poland
Monika Morawiecka
Senior Advisor, The Regulatory Assistance Project, Poland
Dominique Ristori
Former Director-Generale for Energy in EU (2014-2019)
Group Leader
Michał Kurtyka, Minister of Climate and Environment of Poland (2019-2021)
Leading Analyst
Piotr PRZYBYŁO, Research Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Editorial Team
Project Leader
Prof. Katarzyna PISARSKA, Chair, Warsaw Security Forum
Project Coordinator
Tomasz OBREMSKI, Resident Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Project Consultant
Bart KOT, Program Director, Warsaw Security Forum
Wojciech Dzięgiel
Member of the Board, Head of the Energy Security & Resilience Tracks
Dr Bartłomiej E. Nowak
Member of the Board, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Zbigniew Pisarski
Founder of the Warsaw Security Forum, President of the Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Tomasz Smura
Member of the Board, Casimir Pulaski Foundation, Poland, Poland
The 2023 Warsaw Security Forum Annual Report, entitled “Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) as a New Center of Gravity: Recommendation on Strengthening Regional, European and Transatlantic Security” was presented during the 10th Anniversary edition of Warsaw Security Forum.
For over half a year, nearly 30 internationally recognized experts and policymakers in foreign policy, defence, energy and cybersecurity, supported by the Casimir Pulaski Foundation’s team, have been working on developing the report. The report consists of four thematic areas, including defence, democratic resilience, energy and climate, and cybersecurity. For each of these areas, the report proposes two advocacy causes, which serve as “calls for action” for decision-makers, reflecting the security needs of the CEE region and creating proposals for implementable policies on the Transatlantic, European and national levels.
"Times of crisis pose both immense challenges as well as unique opportunities. It is the hope of the authors and contributors of this report, that the transatlantic community makes the most of these times of trial, by first and foremost helping Ukraine to win the war with Russia and second by taking this opportunity to strengthen our own collective defence, as well as our democratic resilience. We trust this report will contribute to finding the right solutions for Central and Eastern Europe and the Transatlantic Alliance as a whole.” - writes Prof. Katarzyna Pisarska, Chair of the Warsaw Security Forum – in the introduction to the report.
In 2023 the WSF High-Level Expert Groups worked together in the realization of a research project entitled: “Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) as a New Center of Gravity: (Wartime) Reordering of Transatlantic Security”
A selected group of 40 high-level international security experts and decision-makers form three working groups in each of the three thematic areas:
(Foreign Policy) Ensuring Better Regional Stability by Protecting a Rules-Based Order (Defense) Europe at War. Strengthening European Defense Capabilities – the role of CEE (State Resilience) Making CEE Societies Fit For an Age of Digital and Energy Security Disruptions
Foreign Policy
Group Members:
Baroness Catherine Ashton
Global Fellow Woodrow Wilson Center, former EU High Representative, Vice President of the European Commission (2009-2014), UK
Helene Conway-Mouret
Vice President of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, France
Jacek Czaputowicz
Minister of Foreign Affairs (2018-2020), University of Warsaw, Poland
Hanna Hopko
Co-Founder, International Center for Ukrainian Victory, Ukraine
Paweł Kowal
Member of the Polish Sejm, Government Plenipotentiary for Polish-Ukrainian Development Cooperation, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Poland
Linas Linkevičius
Ambassador of Lithuania to Sweden, Minister of Foreign Affairs (2012-2020) Minister of National Defence (1993-1996, 2000-2004), Lithuania
Group Leader
Prof. Katarzyna PISARSKA, Chair, Warsaw Security Forum
Group Supervisor
Bartłomiej KOT, Program Director, Warsaw Security Forum
Leading Analyst
Dr Miłosz CORDES, Research Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Defense
Group Members:
Lt. Gen. (R) Andrzej Fałkowski
Polish Military Representative at the Military Committees of NATO and the European Union (2014-2018), Poland
Gen. (R) Sir Mark Carleton-Smith
Chief of the General Staff (2018-2022), United Kingdom
LTG (R) Ben Hodges
NATO Senior Mentor for Logistics and Former Commander, US Army Europe
Andrew A. Michta
Director of the Scowcroft Strategy Initiative and Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council
Janusz Onyszkiewicz
Minister of Defense of Poland (1992-1993, 1997-2000
Gen. (R) David Petraeus
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2011-2012), USA
Jamie Shea
Senior Fellow at Friends of Europe, Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges, NATO (2010-2018), United Kingdom
Group Leader
Robert PSZCZEL, Senior Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Group Supervisor
Tomasz SMURA, Member of the Board, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Group Supervisor
Zbigniew PISARSKI, President Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Leading Analyst
Robert CZULDA, Research Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Resilience: Energy & Climate
Group Members:
Dan Brouillette
President of Sempra Infrastructure, US Secretary of Energy (2019-2021), USA
Bogdan Chirițoiu
President of the Romanian Competition Council, Romania
Artur Lorkowski
Director of the Energy Community Secretariat in Vienna, Austria
Lt. Gen. (R) Herbert Raymond H.R McMaster
National Security Advisor to the President of the United States (2017-2018), USA
Oleksii Riabchyn
Energy and EU Green deal Advisor to Deputy Prime-Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine
Group Leader
Michał Kurtyka, Minister of Climate and Environment of Poland (2019-2021)
Group Supervisor
Sławomir Krenczyk, Member of the Board, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Leading Analyst
Piotr PRZYBYŁO, Research Fellow, Casimir Pulaski Foundation
Resilience: Cybersecurity
Group Members:
Galina Antova
Co-founder, Chief Business Development Officer of Claroty, USA
Amy Hogan-Berney
General Manager, Associate General Counsel, Cybersecurity Policy and Protection, Microsoft
Grzegorz Małecki
Head, Foreign Intelligence Service (AW) (2015-2016), Director of Cybersecurity, Economy and Energy Programs, Casimir Pulaski Foundation, Poland
Richard L. Morningstar
Founding Chairman, Global Energy Center, Atlantic Council; Former US Ambassador to the Republic of Azerbaijan; Former US Ambassador to the European Union
Mikael Tofvesson
Head of the Operations Department, Agency for Psychological Defense, Sweden
Victor Zhora
Deputy Chairman and Chief Digital Transformation Officer at the State Service of Special Communication and Information Protection of Ukraine
Group Leader
Dr. Bilyana LILLY, Researcher, the RAND Corporation, USA
Group Supervisor
Andrzej KOZŁOWSKI, Head of Research Office, Casimir Pulaski Foundation