The 16th year of the Model Conference of the Faculty of International Relations of the University of Economics in Bratislava was held in the spirit of the issue of armed conflicts, what threat they pose in the 21st century or what impact armed conflicts have on humanity and the economy today. This topic was discussed in two panels, which were divided into Economic and Political Sections. The theme of this year was also referred to by the logo of the Model Conference, which contained two main elements, namely "M", depicting two people shaking hands as a sign of consensus and at the same time a reference to the Model Conference, and the second element was a dove with an olive gnocchi as a sign of the world symbol of peace.
The Model Conference itself was preceded by the organization of round tables, where important guests were invited, with whom discussion took place in the main topics. The guest of the first round table was former Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mikuláš Dzurinda, with whom the topic of the Russian invasion of Ukraine was discussed, the actions of the international community were discussed, as well as the current state of affairs in the EU. The topic of the next round table was the energy crisis, where students and guests had the opportunity to listen to a discussion with Mr. Michal Brucháč from Slovnaft. The invitation was also accepted by Mr. Jaroslav Rapčan, who is one of the youngest employees of the Slovak component of Europol. The topic of discussion was the EU-Ukraine sanctions lists. The last guest of the round tables was Viliam Ostatník, an analyst at the Adapt Institute, with whom they discussed mainly the sanctions imposed on the Russian aggressor, while they also had the opportunity to discuss the alliance of Russia and China as well as the future of EU security policy.
The Model Conference itself, which was the end of a year-long effort, took place on April 4, 2023 in the premises of the Auditorium of the University of Economics in Bratislava. The invitation was accepted by distinguished guests, such as the former State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs Mrs. Ingrid Brocková, who gave a speech at the beginning of the Model Conference. Together with Ingrid Brocková, the Director of the United Nations Information Centre in Vienna (UNIS), Mr. Martin Nesirky, spoke at the beginning. The main guests of the panel discussion of the Economic Section were Mr. Michal Horváth, Mr. Michal Lehuta and Mr. Zdeněk Čech. In the Political Section, we were introduced by Mrs. Jana Kobzová, Mr. Tomáš Valášek and Mr. Martin Kačo.
In this way, we would like to thank our guests, sponsors as well as all present participants of the Model Conference 2023.
