In July 2009, Centre for International Relations initiated its electronic book series CIR Analyses. You can read and download the analyses here.

Metka Stare, Senior Research Fellow was invited speaker to the Session “Understanding the service innovation process” organised in the framework of Partnering forum of Knowledge Intensive Services Innovation Platform that took place on February 19, 2009 in Brussels. Forum brought together entrepreneurs, innovation practitioners, policy makers and investors to discuss the service innovation process, the key challenges faced by innovative services businesses and the type of new innovation support measures that are emerging. [link]

Within the MULTIPART project (Multi-stakeholder partnership in post-conflict reconstruction: the Role of the EU) a new edition of Multipart Newsletter was published. Please take a look at: MULTIPART

TEPSA lecture by Paul Meerts from, Netherlands’ Institute of International Relations on European negotiations was held on Oct. 9, 2008 at 9 am at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana. It was attended by some 70 participants, mostly students. Among other things he emphasized the specific characteristics of multilateral negotiations within EU, as compared to other multilateral negotiations, differences among countries approaches and characteristics of diplomatic vis a vis business negotiations. Explanations were given on how to prepare for such negotiations, what skills are needed and which factors are decisive in determining outcomes. The lecture triggered off many questions by the auditorium.

Metka Stare, Senior Research Fellow, was elected the new President of the European Association for REsearch on SERvices (RESER) at the General Assembly held in Stuttgart on September 27th, 2008.

Petra Roter participated at the Launching Conference of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities' Recommendations on National Minorities in Inter-State Relations, on 2 and 3 October 2008 in Bolzano/Bozen. In her presentation on Minorities, States and International Security she assesed the new set of recommendations in the context of the post-cold War international regime for the protection of national minorities. The High Commissioner's Recommendations regulate transnational relations (the role of the so-called kin-states in their relations with kin national minorities) and set up legitimate interests of kin-states, and the conditions under which such external help may be provided without endangering principles of international law, and international peace, stability and security.

The Centre for International Relations organized the World International Studies Committee (WISC) conference "What keeps us apart, what keeps us together: international order, justice, values", which took place in Ljubljana, Slovenia, 23-26 July 2008. Approximately 900 participants from 71 countries and all continents participated at the conference. The conference mainly dealt with a wide range of contemporary theoretical and applicative international and global issues with a special emphasis on norms and values in the world after 9/11. One of the main objectives of the conference was also to invite and integrate scientists and professionals from the developing world in order to make this event truly global. Information about the conference: http://www.wiscnetwork.org/

At the French EU Council pre-presidency conference: "La France en Europe: Un acteur pas comme les autres?", Prof. Marjan Svetličič has given a speech at an opening session named "The First assessment of the Slovenian Presidency". The conference was organized by TEPSA in Paris, June 12-13, 2008.

Prof. Svetličič also participated as the invited speaker on the panel “Does it matter who owns Europe? - The role of Sovereign Wealth Funds.” at the Swedish Network for European Studies in Economics and Business conference in Molle, May 21 -22, 2008.

EU-27 Watch No. 6 is available online. This last number captures key information and assessments from all the EU member states on future of Europe, enlargement and Western Balkans, neigbourhood policies, EU-budget concerns as well as current issues in each member state. EU-Watch as an online publication is part of WP XIII of EU-CONSENT Network of Excellence (EU FP6), lead by Institut für Europäische Politik from Berlin. CIR contributes with the analysis on Slovenia. The entire EU-27 Watch No. 6 is available here, the Slovenian report, here.

Centre of International Relations, University of Ljubljana, in collaboration with Columbia Program on International Investment (Columbia Law School-Earth Institute) in New York will publish the ranking of Slovenian topmultinational companies based on foreign assets – to be released on March 18, 2008. The ranking was developed in the framework of the international Emerging Market Global Players Project and will unveil key information on Slovenia's Top 25 multinationals, including their assets, sales and employment abroad, the expansion of their global activities, and their size relative to leading multinationals from other emerging markets. You can download Press Release here (slovenska verzija).

Centre for International Relations (CIR) is partner in two projects of the EU FP7: i) ServPPIN - The Contribution of Public and Private Services to European Growth and Welfare, and the Role of Public-Private Innovation Networks, coordinated by the University of Alcalá, Spain. The principal aim of the ServPPIN is to analyse the interactions between private and public services and their impact on growth and welfare by focusing on service innovation and public-private innovation networks. CIR cooperates in two WP. ii) Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships in Post-Conflict Reconstruction: The Role of the European Union, coordinated by Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna (Italy). The aim of the project is to analyse multi-stakeholder parnerships in post-conflict reconstruction, with special attention on the role of the European Union.

CIR, in cooperation with TEPSA and the EU-CONSENT network of excellence, organised a Pre-Presidency conference which took place on 3rd and 4th December 2007 at Hotel Union, Ljubljana. The theme of the conference was "Competitiveness, Globalisation and Cohesion: Priorities of the Slovenian EU Presidency". The conference discussed some of the major issues of the European agenda, and highlighted the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the EU. The Slovenian Minister of Foreign Affairs (Dimitrij Rupel), the European Commissioner for Science & Research (Janez Potocnik) and many other distinguished speakers addressed the conference (see  programme for details). A General Assembly of TEPSA, open to representatives of all TEPSA member institutes, took place on 4th December following the conference. The conference hosted over 200 attendants from Slovenia's public and political life, as well as diplomatic core in Slovenia and journalists.  Professor Jaap de Zwaan, Director of Clingendael Institute, The Hagues, presented recommendations by TEPSA network to Slovenian Presidency, the conference concluded with an overall optimism for the Slovenia's conduct of its Presidency tasks.