Speaker

Andrea Ikic-Böhm

Ambassador of the Republic of Austria to the Republic of Bulgaria

Austrian Embassy Sofia

In 1994, Andrea Ikic-Böhm entered the Austrian Foreign Ministry and participated in the preparations for Austria's accession to the European Union (1 January 1995). Her professional career brought a wide range of assignments:

In the MFA (Vienna):

Bilateral Relations with Western and Northern Europe;

Coordinator of Coreper  during the first Austrian Presidency of the EU (1998);

Regional Cooperation;

Arms control and Disarmament;

Head of Unit for Export Control;

Director of the Border Traffic Department;

Deputy Director General for Legal and Consular Affairs;

Director of the Structural Affairs and Services to Personnel Department.

Posts abroad: Zagreb / Republic of Croatia (intern 1997, DHM 1999-2002, Ambassador 2011-2015 – when Croatia joined the EU in 2013);Strasbourg / French Republic (2005 Consul General and Deputy Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe);Athens / Hellenic Republic (Ambassador 2015-2019);Sofia / Republic of Bulgaria (Ambassador since October 2022).

Monday 26 | 10

Sofia Balkan HotelMon 26 | 10

With major European elections on the horizon in 2027, the debate over national interests versus collective EU foreign and security policy is intensifying. This panel will address whether the EU should re-evaluate its approach to member states to counter rising nationalism and strengthen European cohesion.