February 11th, 2022
The roundtable hosted by the Institute of the International Relations in Prague, included participants from the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from the Office of the Government of the Czech Republic, representatives from the EEAS, and academics from several Czech universities. Speakers commented the policy brief which was published in the IDEA project and examined various forms of informal differentiated integration from the perspective of small states, particularly of the Czech Republic. The participants assessed the contribution of lead groups and ad hoc contact groups in advancing EU foreign policy objectives, and stressed the need for ensuring the communication flow with non-participating countries. They also discussed the potential involvement of the EU-level policy actors in these informal mechanisms of the Common foreign and security policy.