Rewatch the event
Event description
The Atlantic Council and Atlantik-Brücke presented the Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics on September 22, 2023. The event follows the inaugural Forum held last year.
In the heart of Berlin, we convened economic and financial leaders from both sides of the Atlantic. At this year’s conference, we outlined a way forward on the use of tools of economic statecraft.
The G7 response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has shown us a new dimension of transatlantic economic coordination. The levers of sanctions, export controls, and asset freezes have been pulled to pursue foreign policy and national security objectives.
But the use of these tools has raised important questions. How can both the US and Europe avoid becoming economically dependent on adversarial powers without compromising growth or triggering more inflation? Which rules and best practices should form a new blueprint for economic statecraft? How has the West’s response to Putin’s aggression reshaped the contours of the role of the dollar and euro in the global economy?
At the Forum in Berlin, we launched new research on these challenges and brought together leaders from both the private and public sector to outline the next steps the US and Europe should take together.
Coverage
Video playlist
Opening Remarks
Building common ground
Navigating the geoeconomic era with an open approach
G20, BRICS, and the future multilateralism
Geoeconomic deepening of transatlantic cooperation
Adapting at speed
The clash of economic and national security
A conversation with US Trade Representative Ambassador Kathy Tai
Event recaps
Transcripts
Report
Photos
Speakers
Keynote speakers
Speakers and moderators
Agenda
Welcoming remarks
Souâd Benkredda, Member of the Board of Managing Directors, DZ BANK
Sigmar Gabriel, Chairman, Atlantik-Brücke
Fred Kempe, President and Chief Executive Officer, Atlantic Council
Session I – Building common ground: Transatlantic approaches to economic statecraft
Michael Lieberman, Assistant Director for Enforcement, Office of Foreign Asset Control, US Department of the Treasury
David Lim, Co-Director, Task Force KleptoCapture, US Department of Justice
David Reed, Director, Sanctions Directorate, UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Darta Tentere, Policy Advisor to the EU Sanctions Envoy David O’Sullivan, European Commission
MODERATED BY
Kim Donovan, Director, Economic Statecraft Initiative, GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council
Remarks and keynote introduction
Daniel Fried, Weiser Family Distinguished Fellow and Former US Ambassador to Poland, Atlantic Council
Keynote I – Navigating the geoeconomic era with an open approach
A Conversation with First Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of the Netherlands Sigrid Kaag
Sigrid Kaag, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Government of the Netherlands
MODERATED BY
Fred Kempe, President and Chief Executive Officer, Atlantic Council
Session II – G20, BRICS, and the future of multilateralism
Jörg Kukies, State Secretary; Economic, Financial, and Energy Policy Advisor, German Federal Chancellery
Daleep Singh, Chief Global Economist and Head of Global Macroeconomic Research, PGIM Fixed Income
MODERATED BY
Stephanie Flanders, Senior Executive Editor for Economics | Head, Bloomberg News | Bloomberg Economics
Breakout Sessions
I. Ukraine reconstruction: The role of positive economic statecraft
Christoph Denk, Managing Director for Policy, Strategy and Delivery, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Nataliya Katser-Buchkovska, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Ukraine Sustainable Investment Fund
Nico Lange, Senior Fellow, Zeitenwende-Initiative, Munich Security Conference
Charles Lichfield, Deputy Director, GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council
MODERATED BY
Nicole Goldin, Non-Resident Senior Fellow | Global Head of Inclusive Growth, Atlantic Council | Abt Associates
II. Tip of the spear: Roles and responsibilities of financial institutions
Johannes Pockrandt, Managing Director, Citibank
Geoffrey Okamoto, Non-Resident Senior Fellow | Managing Director, Atlantic Council | Goldman Sachs
Maria Shagina, Senior Fellow, International Institute for Strategic Studies
Andrea Wong, Director, PGIM Fixed Income
MODERATED BY
Daniel Tannebaum, Non-Resident Senior Fellow | Partner, Atlantic Council | Oliver Wyman
III. New era of digital assets: Innovation and regulation
Maria Demertzis, Senior Fellow, Bruegel
Kenneth Kang, Deputy Director, Strategy and Policy Review Department, International Monetary Fund
Elizabeth Kelly, Special Assistant to the President, National Economic Council, The White House
Jesse McWaters, Senior Vice President, Regulatory Affairs Advocacy, Mastercard
MODERATED BY
Ananya Kumar, Associate Director of Digital Currencies, GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council
Keynote II – Geoeconomic deepening of transatlantic cooperation
A Conversation with Federal Minister Robert Habeck
Robert Habeck, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action,
German Federal Government
MODERATED BY
Julia Friedlander, Chief Executive Officer, Atlantik-Brücke
Session III – Adapting at speed: The private sector and geopolitics
Nils Aldag, Chief Executive Officer, SunFire
Candace Kelly, Chief Legal Officer, Stellar Development Foundation
Christian Sewing, Chief Executive Officer, Deutsche Bank
Michael Schoellhorn, Chief Executive Officer, Airbus Defence and Space
MODERATED BY
Josh Lipsky, Senior Director, GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council
Session IV – The clash of economics and national security: Trade, industrial policy, and supply chains
Elizabeth Baltzan, Senior Advisor to the United States Trade Representative, Office of the United States Trade Representative
Denis Redonnet, Deputy Director-General, Chief Trade Enforcement Officer, EU Commission
Anahita Thoms, Board Member, Atlantik-Bruecke and Partner, Baker & Mckenzie International
MODERATED BY
Sarah Bauerle Danzman, Senior Fellow | Associate Professor, Atlantic Council | Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies
Remarks and keynote introduction
Jörn Fleck, Senior Director, Europe Center, Atlantic Council
Keynote III – A Conversation with US Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai (Virtual)
Katherine Tai, United States Trade Representative, Office of the United States Trade Representative
MODERATED BY
Stephanie Flanders, Senior Executive Editor for Economics | Head, Bloomberg News | Bloomberg Economics
Closing remarks
Kimberly Donovan, Director, Economic Statecraft Initiative, GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council
Julia Friedlander, Chief Executive Officer, Atlantik-Brücke
Josh Lipsky, Senior Director, GeoEconomics Center, Atlantic Council
Reception
Beverages and light refreshments provided
Transatlantic Forum 2022
In 2022, in partnership with Atlantik-Brücke, the Atlantic Council’s GeoEconomics Center hosted the inaugural Transatlantic Forum on GeoEconomics in Frankfurt, Germany.
The Forum provided an opportunity to advance the transatlantic dialogue from crisis response to addressing the key economic issues that will underpin the US-Europe partnership over the next decade.
Speakers at the four high-level sessions discussed the international roles of the dollar and the euro, the future of transatlantic trade, a roadmap for digital assets, and the new era of economic statecraft. The event launched new research in each area.
Partners
Partner
DZ BANK
DZ BANK is the second largest commercial bank in Germany and the central bank for more than 700 cooperative banks, in which it holds a majority interest.
Media partner
Bloomberg
Bloomberg is the world’s primary distributor of financial data and a top news provider, giving influential decision makers a critical edge by connecting them to a network of information, people and ideas.
Stay connected
Atlantik-Brücke
Strengthening the exchange between politics and business, Atlantik-Brücke aims to deepen cooperation between Germany, Europe and America on all levels.
GeoEconomics Center
At the intersection of economics, finance, and foreign policy, the GeoEconomics Center is a translation hub with the goal of helping shape a better global economic future.
Follow the conversation on X, formerly known as Twitter, with @ACGeoEcon and @AtlantikBruecke using #TransatlanticForum