The IES Inaugural Lecture will be delivered at the IES on Thursday 12 October at 5:30PM by Mr. Matti Maasikas, the Deputy Minister for EU Affairs of Estonia, which holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU.

Mr. Maasikas is a renowned EU diplomat, who will share his long experience to reflect on the current state of the European Union. He has held numerous important positions both in the Estonian Ministry of Foreign affairs (such as Secretary-General and Estonia's Permanent Representative to the European Union) as well as the European Commission (working for both Commission president Barroso and Commissioner Rehn). His keynote address will be entitled: ‘From "1984" to 2004 - An Eastern European's Journey to Brussels’. The inaugural lecture will be followed by a drinks reception. Registration is mandatory.