News
Eastern European diplomats trained at Clingendael
October 19, 2009. From 27 August to 15 October the 32nd Course for Junior Diplomats was organised by the Clingendael Institute. In this programme junior diplomats from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine come to The Hague for a two-month course, specially designed to train them and enhance the relations between their countries and Western European Countries – in particular the Netherlands.
The programme is clustered around the theme's of international security, European co-operation and integration and international economics. Part of the programme is devoted to skills training, like writing a political analysis, briefing a foreign delegation and debating, which are always highly valued by the participants.
Before bringing the lessons learned in practice at their respective ministries, the diplomats did not only visit many different organisations in The Netherlands, but they also went on a tour of the European Institutions together. In Brussels and Strasbourg they got a real taste of Europe and got the chance to ask anything they wanted to the staff of institutions like the European Parliament, NATO and the European Court of Human Rights. A highlight during this so-called European Tour were the individual visits to their Permanent Representations to the Council of Europe.
As their time in The Hague is coming to an end, both participants and the Clingendael Institute look back on two interesting, multicultural and highly informative months!