Anders Fogh Rasmussen Joins the Board of Yalta European Strategy (YES)

Yalta European Strategy (YES) is pleased to announce that Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Founder of Rasmussen Global, Secretary General of NATO (2009-2014), and Prime Minister of Denmark (2001-2009), has joined the YES Board.

Commenting on the appointment, YES founder and member of the Board Victor Pinchuk said: “Anders will bring invaluable know-how and experience and ideas He will be a great asset for YES’ mission to integrate Ukraine with Europe and the world.”

Anders Fogh Rasmussen said: “As a long-standing friend of Ukraine, it is a privilege to join the YES Board. YES has played an important role in raising international awareness of Ukraine, and supporting its reform programme. As a member of the YES Board I intend to continue my efforts to ensure Ukraine is stable, secure and free to set its own destiny.”

The YES Board is chaired by Aleksander Kwaśniewski, President of Poland (1995-2005), and consists of the following members: Victor Pinchuk, the founder of YES; Carl Bildt, Minister for Foreign Affairs (2006-2014) and Prime Minister (1991-1994) of Sweden ; Pat Cox, President of the European Parliament (2002-2004) and Member of the European Parliament (1989-2004); Stephane Fouks, Vice President of Havas and Executive Co-Chairman of Havas Worldwide; Wolfgang Ischinger, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference; Javier Solana, High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy of the European Union (1999-2009), Secretary General of NATO (1995-1999) and distinguished fellow in Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen has been at the center of European and global politics for three decades as a leading Danish parliamentarian, Minister for Taxation (1987-1992), Minister for Economic Affairs (1990-1992), Prime Minister of Denmark (2001-2009) and Secretary General of NATO (2009-2014). In 2014, Anders Fogh Rasmussen established Rasmussen Global, which provides geopolitical and strategic consulting services.

His tenure as Secretary General of NATO marked a fundamental transformation of the Alliance. He developed a new Strategic Concept, which sets the Alliance’s core priorities for the future. In the midst of the most serious economic crisis in recent time, he launched “Smart Defence” to help nations make more efficient use of their resources through more multinational cooperation. In response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, he initiated a NATO “Readiness Action Plan”.

Yalta European Strategy (YES) is a leading forum for discussing Ukraine’s European future and global context. YES fosters new ideas. It connects Ukraine to international partners, supports forces for change in Ukraine, and builds networks of supporters for a new Ukraine worldwide.

For over a decade, YES has initiated dialog between leaders from Ukraine, the EU, the US, the Russian Federation, and beyond. Within Ukraine, it provides a platform for the government and opposition. It brings together leaders from politics, business, media, civil society and the expert community.

YES began in 2004, when Victor Pinchuk invited some 30 European leaders to debate the future of Ukraine and the EU at the first Annual Meeting.

YES Annual Meeting took place at the symbolic Livadia Palace in Yalta from 2004 to 2013. The location where Europe was divided in 1945 thus became the venue for uniting a wider Europe. After the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, the YES Annual Meeting moved to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

YES meetings have brought together heads of state and government such as Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, Bill Clinton, Dalia Grybauskaitė, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Bronisław Komorowski, Mario Monti, Shimon Peres and Donald Trump. Among the speakers were also heads of international organizations like Kofi Annan, José Manuel Barroso, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Ronald Noble, James Wolfensohn, Lamberto Zannier and Robert Zoellick. Senior officials, such as Hillary Clinton, Valdis Dombrovskis, Robert Gates, Johannes Hahn, Chrystia Freeland, Victoria Nuland, Condoleezza Rice and Martin Schulz, have spoken at the meetings. In addition, thinkers and social leaders like Richard Branson, German Gref, Richard Haass, Niall Ferguson, Alexei Kudrin, Arthur Laffer, Yurii Milner, Larry Summers, Nouriel Roubini and Strobe Talbott have been among the panelists. Presidents and Prime Ministers of Ukraine, as well as Ukraine’s political, business and social leaders, regularly speak at the meetings.

Official website: yes-ukraine.org

For media inquiries please contact the press-office of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation:
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: +380 44 494 11 48

Or the Press Office of Anders Fogh Rasmussen:
E-mail: [email protected]

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