ІХ Delphi Economic Forum – the main insights

On April 10-13, a delegation from the Institute for Economic Leadership took part in IX Delphi Economic Forum (Greece). The event brought together representatives of the non-governmental sector and leading global think tanks, political activists, government officials and representatives of parliaments from different countries. Every year, the Delphi Economic Forum covers the most important topics related to the future and thus forms a vision of the development of society on a global scale. Geopolitics, Sustainable Economy & Finance, Planet, Education, People, Future – all these crucial topics were discussed by about 800 leading experts from 70 countries of the world in panel discussions, conversations and lectures. We are grateful that significant attention was also paid to Ukraine in the context of international security, enlargement of the European Union and NATO, and world trade.
 
The forum started with an address by the founder and president of DEF Simeon G. Tsomokos. He began with the fact that the world is at the stage of the Great Transition, associated with technological progress, migration and demographic crises, overpopulation and climate change. That is why such initiatives are necessary to ensure an open dialogue. To the words of Mr. Tsomokos, we add that along with rapid changes today we have threats from world autocracies (Russia, China, ISIS), the growth of populism in Western countries and challenges to the free market in the world from protectionist policies. Therefore, in the process of the “Great Transition”, it is critically necessary to continue to defend the ideas of democracy, human rights and a liberal economy. It is symbolic that for the first time these ideas originated precisely in the Ancient Greek civilization.
 
The President of the Republic of Greece Kateryna Sakellaropoulou, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi and the President of the Republic of Slovenia also spoke at the opening. strong>Natasha Pirz Musar. All three leaders of the states drew attention to threats to world security and called for countering them for the sake of establishing peace. In particular, Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that military aid to Ukraine is critically necessary for this.
 
During the four days of the event, many panel and keynote sessions were held, the content of which is completely difficult to cover – so big was the event in Delphi. Therefore, we publish key theses about economic and political freedom and the position of Ukraine in the international arena.
 
The panel discussion Ukraine`s fight for survival: scenarios on the future of the European security order was attended by Thomas Greminger, Director Geneva Center for Security Policy; Spiros Lampridis, special representative of Greece in Ukraine; Tinatin Ahvlediani, researcher of the Center for European Political Studies; Indrek Kannik, Director of the International of the Defense and Security Center; Anita Richter, Head of the Ukrainian Unit at the OECD. The speakers agreed that today Ukraine is an outpost between the European Union and Russia, and the future of the global security system will depend on the development of the war. Escalation, the victory of one of the parties, or the establishment of agreements as a result of negotiations were named as possible scenarios for the development of the war. However, Indrek Kannik, representative of Estonia, pointed out that dictatorships will not stop unless they are stopped by force. Russia’s war against Ukraine raised an important existential problem of the existence of the European Union, namely its further expansion and its own security system, and also added a new challenge – the integration of a country in a state of war – which should prove the resilience of the alliance. Tinatin Ahvlediani and Anita Richter emphasized that much depends on Ukraine’s efforts to implement reforms, but now they see positive steps in this direction, in particular, in improving the business climate. For its part, the Institute of Economic Leadership adds that the priority for the Ukrainian authorities should be the reform of authorities that investigate economic crimes and total deregulation in order to reduce corruption.
 
Conversations with representatives of the USA related to the global world order were interesting. George Tsunis, US Ambassador to Greece emphasized that NATO should expand its capabilities to help Ukraine, whose people are dying for democratic values. The ambassador emphasized that in the global context, democracy will work when it works everywhere, which is impossible without influencing authoritarian states. Mr. Tsunis added that today the world should unite not around common interests, but around common values, among which are democracy and human rights. Financial Times editor Peter Spiegel warned against the growing global Russian threat due to its increasing nuclear arsenal, support for Iran and friendly relations with China. So, if the EU wants to keep its existing in the face of anti-Western countries, it is necessary to build up its security system and move from the phase of “geopolitical teenagers” to development. In particular, Peter Spiegel noted that there are already the first steps in this direction, when, for example, Germany gets rid of the pacifism that prevailed after the Second World War and provides support to Ukraine.
 
As part of the Delphi Economic Forum, panel sessions were also held with the support and participation of representatives of the Tholos Foundation – an organization engaged in free market advocacy and education on taxes, government spending and regulations.
 
The panel discussion Rekindling the Prometheus Flame: where is the Europe’s competitive advantage was attended by Fred De Fossard, Head of the British Department of Prosperity in Legatum Institute; Georgi Xirogiannis, General Director of the Hellenic Federation of Entrepreneurs; Oscar Guinea, Senior Economist of EСIPE; Vasilis Douzenis, leading economist at Oxford Economics; Lorenzo Montanari, vice president of the Tholos Foundation and Philip Thompson, political analyst Tholos Foundation. During the conversation, the experts emphasized that innovation is the key to sustainable development. It is hard not to agree with this, considering such examples as solar panels or windmills, which arose in the conditions of a free market economy as innovations and at the same time contributed to the improvement of the climate situation. At the same time, for the emergence of innovations, it is necessary to create a competitive business environment, which is impossible without reducing bureaucracy. That is why the three main changes in the European Union should be the reduction of regulations, the reduction of micro-management and the introduction of policies focused on the emergence of innovations. Speakers also cautioned against over-regulatory policies that could harm market competitiveness, which is the main driver of product improvement. The Institute of Economic Leadership shares the views of experts on the need for deregulation and continues to advocate for it in the government and the media.
 
Among the speakers of the second panel discussion “Cracking the Oracle’s code: revealing policies for next generation innovation” – Manolis Kefalogiannis, Member of Parliament of the Greek Parliament from the New Democracy Party; Ramiunas Mashios, Vice President of JTI; Krisa Kazakou, legal consultant of Etraveli Group; Christopher Lingle, American economist; Tim Andrews, Director of Consumer Affairs, Tholos Foundation and Johan Norberg, author of The Capitalist Manifesto >. Experts emphasized the problem of the EU, which is similar to the Ukrainian problem, namely, rudimentary regulations that exist only on paper and do not work in practice. We would like to add that such norms can be used by state structures at any time to put pressure on businesses “for non-compliance”. The key idea of the discussion was that it is necessary to create regulations taking into account their consequences and impact on market situations. Inefficient regulations are reflected in the price, which primarily affects the consumer and he pays for these additional costs of the entrepreneur. That is why the best friend of the consumer is not the official, but the entrepreneur. And excessive meticulousness in compliance with regulatory norms by entrepreneurs does not add any value to the product and does not positively affect innovation.
 
Delphi Economic Forum is a great platform for discussing future issues. The future development of humanity is not so scary if the right approaches are applied to the formation of policies. For example, economic and political freedom, human rights and dignity, as well as the constant exchange of ideas without borders, because without this, innovation cannot be created. To achieve sustainable development and success, every country in the world should be guided by what the ancient Greek civilization was like. It was not an empire, on the contrary, it was decentralized, without the imposition of religion or political order, and therefore open to innovation. Therefore, it is necessary to support and nurture the culture of innovation, in particular, in order to win the fight against the enemies of freedom.