07/12/2022
The “European prospects” of Balkan countries have evolved little since 2003.
Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe (ÖFZ)
The Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe (ÖFZ) is a French-Austrian intergovernmental organization, founded following an initiative by then Prime Minister Jacques Chirac and Federal Chancellor Bruno Kreisky having the objective to develop economic relations between Western and Eastern Europe, and to take part in the construction of a Europe of peace.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the center focused its research interests on the problems of eastern enlargement of the European Union, and integrated in its field of activities countries such as Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic Slovakia, Slovenia, the Baltic States as well as Romania and Bulgaria. The French-Austrian Center is a forum for the exchange of ideas with the purpose of furthering the dialogue between representatives from the world of politics, the economy, and members of the civil society as well as academics from European member states and candidate countries. The center’s activities primarily deal with economic, political and geopolitical problems of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe : the center’s raison d’être as a space of reflection and dialogue was strengthened by the need of support and assistance of the new member states in the process of integration. Since 2004; the ÖFZ is orienting itself towards the new neighbors of the European Union, in particular towards the Western Balkans, countries imagining their future in a European perspective.
The summaries of all events organized jointly by the IFRI and theÖFZ are accessible on the CFA's web page.
Both the Austrian and the French government account equally for the budget of the ÖFZ. Depending on the nature of the treated subjects, subsidies by the European Commission and public or private institutions also contribute to the funding of the events. The activities of the ÖFZ are decided by a directorate which elects among its members the president and the secretary general.
Thierry de MONTBRIAL, Honorary President
Since June 2015, Dominique DAVID is CFA's President.
CFA in Vienna
- Hans-Dietmar SCHWEISGUT , General Secretary
- Ambassador Dr. Peter JANKOWITSCH, member of Direction Committee and former General Secretary
- Dr. Florent MARCIAQ, Deputy General Secretary and Associated Research Fellow
- Katharina SIGWALD, Project Manager, katharina.sigwald@oefz.at
Centre Franco-Autrichien pour le Rapprochement en Europe (CFA)
Salzgries, 19/16
A - 1010 Vienne
Autriche
www.oefz.at
Dominique DAVID
Advisor to the Executive Chairman, editor-in-chief of Politique étrangère and co-director of RAMSES
...
Florent MARCIACQ
Associate Research Fellow at the Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe (ÖFZ)
... 
10/02/2022
After years of lower interest, France has signaled its ambition to re-engage in the Western Balkans. It is not starting from scratch. Historical affinities with the countries of the region abound, in culture, sciences, politics, and economy.
07/09/2021
The United States and the European Union (EU) are now both in agreement regarding China – long viewed benevolently – as a systemic rival in the international order.
02/06/2020
The coronavirus crisis has affected the countries of the Weimar Triangle to varying degrees. Bilateral relations between Germany and Poland as well as Germany and France have been strongly influenced by border closures, which have led to tensions between the countries.
03/03/2015
The process of European enlargement has been officially suspended for five years. Yet in the western Balkans it is rapprochement with Europe that publicly underpins the majority of political policy.
30/03/2011
This report presents the outcomes of a recently-completed research project1 aimed at uncovering the different ways in which energy poverty – understood as a condition wherein the domestic energy services available to a household are below socially and materially necessitated levels – is...
02/03/2010
An Interim Agreement on Trade and Trade related aspects (ITA), signed between the European Community and Serbia in April 2008, entered into force on February 1, 2010. This ITA, as a part of the Stabilization and Association Agreement, “establishes a bilateral free trade area over a period...
15/05/2001
An analysis of the 1999 NATO intervention in Kosovo in the eyes of international law and the UN Charter.
01/04/2000
This study analyzes the new relationship between Russia and Western countries since the beginning of the 1990s.
29
Apr
2024
from 18:00 to 20:00
- External Events
Migrations Challenges in National and European Politics Hybrid Conference
Migrations, prompted by rising insecurity, socio-economic disparities and environmental poverty, are back on the top of the EU’s political agenda. To consolidate the EU’s approach in this policy-area, the European Parliament and Council adopted in December 2023 a New Pact on Migration and...
30
Jun
2023
from 09:00 to 10:15
- Videoconferences
Rethinking EU Enlargement in the Western Balkans Conference
The Western Balkans have been on the EU path for more than twenty years now, without really getting closer to EU accession. Their European perspectives took a new turn with Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
17
May
2023
from 18:00 to 19:45
- External Events
Hungary, European Democracy and the Rule of Law in the Age of Geopolitics Seminar - This event will be held in presential at the Central European University in Budapest or to follow in livestream.
The outbreak of Russia’s war in Ukraine, with its international repercussions, has shaped new geopolitical realities and affected the continent in profound ways.
02
Mar
2023
08
Feb
2023
from 14:00 to 15:15
- Videoconferences
Has the European Union risen up to the challenges of geopolitics? Europe after the Czech Presidency of the Council Online conference on Zoom
The invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation last year has completely overhauled the geopolitical situation on the European continent in 2022. It has exposed critical vulnerabilities in the European Union but also demonstrated that Europeans are able to act quickly, effectively, and...
07
Jun
2022
from 19:00 to 20:30
- Seminars and Round-table Conferences
How Realistic is a New Partnership Between Europe and Africa? Seminar
An open discussion organized within the framework of the partnership "Schwarzenbergplatz Forum" between the Austro-French Center and the French Embassy in Austria
25
May
2022
from 09:30 to 11:30
- Videoconferences
Neutrality and non-alignment after the Russian Invasion of Ukraine Videoconference
Registrations for this event will be closed on May 23rd.
...
15
Dec
2021
from 09:00 to 10:30
- Videoconferences
Global Gateway - the New European Silk Road? Videoconference
Ifri/CFA breakfast organised with the Vienna Institute for Internation Economic Studies (wiww) in the Framework of the Rencontres de Schwarzenbergerplatz.
27
Oct
2020
from 09:00 to 12:15
- Videoconferences
Trade, Investments, Technology, Climate Change, Human Rights:How should the EU Deal with China? International videoconference
A little more than 40 years since China's opening and reform it has risen to a comprehensive global power which is a strategic partner, but also a competitor and even a strategic rival for the EU. The expectation that China's system of governance would gradually converge with a liberal, open,...
07
Oct
2020
from 14:00 to 15:15
- External Events
Should the EU Recalibrate its Approach towards Russia? Side-Event at Globsec Bratislava Forum, Bratislava
EU-Russia relations have barely improved since the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis in 2014. Geopolitical tensions remain vivid in the East and have rendered the situation across the EU’s neighbourhoods particularly volatile. During his visit in Warsaw in February 2020, President Macron...
02/03/2023
The invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation and consequent supply chain disruptions in the energy sector have exposed critical vulnerabilities in the European Union’s broader strategic autonomy agenda and bolstered efforts at lessening strategic dependency on third states in a variety of...
01/06/2022
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has reignited discussions about the status of neutrality and non-alignment in several parts of Europe.
28/10/2020
Ifri, the Austro-French Centre for Rapprochement in Europe and Konrad Adenauer Foundation Multilateral Dialogue organized a videoconference called "Trade, Investments, Technology, Climate Change, Human Rights: How should the EU Deal with China? " on October 27, 2020.
...
26/11/2019
The debate on the financial perspectives of the European Union (EU) is traditionally part of a complex dramaturgy, which borders on the cacophony: the proponents of more European solidarity oppose supporters of a fair return, defenders of traditional sectoral policies confront the promoters of...