588th Plenary session 30-31 May 2024

588th plenary session, with the following guests and debates:

• Youth voices for EU choices, with Bora Muzhaqi, Minister for Youth and Children of Albania, Biliana Sirakova, EU Youth Coordinator, European Commission (tbc), Elias Dray, Vice-President of the European Youth Forum, Katrīna Leitāne, President of the EESC Youth Group and youth representatives who participated in the EESC Youth Test pilot project, at 15:00 on Thursday 30 May 2024
• EU Defence strategy, linked to the adoption of the opinion CCMI/222 on the European defence industrial strategy, with Anne Fort, Head of Unit for Defence Industrial Policy, European Commission Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space (DEFIS), Tania Latici, Political Officer – Peace, Security and Defence, European External Action Service; Associate fellow at the Egmont Institute and Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) and Pietro De Lotto, President of the Consultative Commission on Industrial Change, at 16:30 on Thursday 30 May 2024
• The Future of Cohesion Policy, linked to the Ninth report on economic, social and territorial cohesion and to the adoption of opinions ECO/639 on the Role of cohesion policy in upcoming rounds of EU enlargement and ECO/646 on the Ninth report on economic, social and territorial cohesion, with Vasco Cordeiro, President of the European Committee of the Regions, Elisa Ferreira, European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms and Prof. Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, Chair of the Group of High-Level Specialists on the Future of Cohesion Policy at 9:30 on Friday 31 May 2024
• No place for hate: a Europe united against hatred, with Dubravka Šuica, European Commission's Vice-President for Democracy and Demography (video message), Marie-Colline Leroy, Belgian State Secretary for Gender Equality, Equal Opportunities and Diversity, Emmanuel Achiri, representative from the European Network Against Racism, Janelle Rizzo and a second representative of the European Citizens Panel on Tackling Hatred in Society, linked to the adoption of the opinion SOC/792 on No place for hate: a Europe united against hatred, at 11:00 on Friday 31 May 2024
• Lessons learned from the 2004 EU enlargement for Tomorrow’s Europe, with László Andor, Secretary General of the Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS), Jarosław Pietras, former Polish Secretary of State in charge of EU accession, Dr. Tinatin Akhvlediani, Research Fellow in the EU Foreign Policy Unit, Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) and Štefan Füle, Former European Commissioner for Enlargement and Chairman of the European Policy Center (EPC) Task Force on EU enlargement (remotely), at 12:00 on Friday 31 May 2024