Political Symposium

The Alpbach Political Symposium 2010 will analyse the relationship between political constructions and plans on the one hand and the resulting realities on the other. In international politics, the size, number and composition of the powers involved renders calculations and prognoses particularly difficult. The diversity of cultures, histories, forms of government and current interests of the players involved makes them unique entities whose reactions cannot be universally predicted.

Under the motto "Construction and Reality", this year s Political Symposium will hone in on some of the most important global political constructions of the recent past and of the present. What became of the dreams and visions of 1989, and where is the global interplay of powers headed today? Can the United Nations fulfil their mandate? How will the EU of the 27 evolve in the wake of the Lisbon Treaty? Where do recognised and potential membership candidates like Turkey and Serbia stand today? These questions and more will be discussed by high-ranking international politicians and thinkers.