SPEAKERS in 2023

Kudo Yasushi （Moderator）
President, The Genron NPO (Japan)

Yasushi Kudo is the founder and president of the Genron NPO since its establishment in 2001. In 2005, he launched annual civil dialogue (“Tokyo-Beijing Forum”) and joint opinion poll between Japan and China, which have been conducted over the 12 years since then. In 2013, he newly launched a dialogue, the Japan-Korea Future Dialogue, between Japan and Korea and has conducted a comparative opinion poll on impression of each other’s country.

From 2012, Mr. Kudo has served as Japanese delegation of the Council of Councils, an international think tank network initiated by the Council on Foreign Relations. “The Asia Forum of Opinion Leaders” has also been established as a venue for open and free debate for intellectuals in Japan and Southeast Asian countries to jointly identify common challenges, and advocate solutions to them, while collaborating to bolster democracy and address challenges to democracy.

Ettore Greco
Executive Vice President, Institute of International Affairs (IAI), Italy

Ettore Greco is Executive Vice President of the IAI and also head of the Italy's foreign policy and the Multilateralism and global governance programmes of the institute. He was also Director of the IAI from 2008 to 2017. He worked as visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution from January 2006 to July 2007. He taught at the universities of Parma and Bologna. From 2000 to 2006 he worked as correspondent for the Economist Intelligence Unit. From 1993 to 2000 he directed the IAI's program on Central and Eastern Europe. He was also Deputy Director of the IAI from 1997 to 2008. From 2000 to 2006 he was Editor of The International Spectator. He is the author of a number of publications on the EU's institutions and foreign policy, transatlantic relations and the Balkans. He has been a free-lance journalist since 1988.

Thomas Gomart
Director, French Institute of International Relations (Ifri), France

Dr. Thomas Gomart (PhD in History at Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne, and EMBA at HEC) is the Director of Ifri since 2015. He has published extensively on Russia, energy and digital issues, think tanks and country risk. Among his publications: Notre intérêt national (co-directed with Thierry de Montbrial), Odile Jacob, 2017 ; L'Affolement du monde, Tallandier, 2019 (Prix Louis Marin & Prix du Livre de géopolitique) ; Guerres invisibles, Tallandier, 2021. His most recent book - Les ambitions inavouées, Tallandier - was published in January 2023. Thomas Gomart has been a member of the Strategic Review Committee on the Strategic Review of Defence and National Security 2017 (French Ministry of Armed Forces). He is a member of the scientific committee of the Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defence (IHEDN) and of the editorial board of the French journals Politique étrangère, Revue des deux mondes and Etudes. He is Chevalier de l'Ordre national du mérite.

Sunjoy Joshi
Chairman and Chief Executive, Observer Research Foundation (ORF), India

Mr. Sunjoy Joshi Heads the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), New Delhi as its Chairman and Chief Executive. He has over the last 10 years spearheaded the rise of the ORF as India's premier think tank and window into the world of Global Affairs.
He joined the Madhya Pradesh Cadre of the Indian Administrative Services in 1983. Took premature retirement in 2009 in order to pursue his academic interests. He has been Visiting Associate at the International Institute of Strategic Studies, London and Distinguished Visitor to the Program on Energy and Sustainable Development, University of Stanford, USA. He speaks, publishes and comments on the world of technology, energy, and development, framing them in the context of global shifts and the challenges to growth and employment faced by emerging economies. Has a regular Youtube commentary on Global and Current Affairs called India's World which is also available as a podcast. Twitter: @Sunjoyj

James M. Lindsay
Senior Vice President, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), the United States

James M. Lindsay is senior vice president, director of studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg chair at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), where he oversees the work of the more than six dozen fellows in CFR's David Rockefeller Studies Program　as well as CFR's eleven fellowship programs.
He has written widely on the American foreign-policymaking process and the domestic politics of American foreign policy. His latest book is The Empty Throne: America's Abdication of Global Leadership, co-authored with Ivo H. Daalder. His previous book with Ambassador Daalder, America Unbound: The Bush Revolution in Foreign Policy, was awarded the 2003 Lionel Gelber Prize. Dr. Lindsay writes The Water's Edge blog and hosts The President's Inbox podcast.

Creon Butler
Research Director, Trade, Investment and New Governance Models, and Director, Global Economy and Finance Programme, The Royal Institute of International Affairs

Creon Butler leads the Global Economy and Finance Programme at Chatham House, and is director for trade, investment and new governance models. He joined the institute in 2019, since when he has written and published on a wide range of global economic policy issues, including the interaction between macroeconomic policy and climate change, sovereign debt distress, the challenge of funding global health priorities, and the long-term implications for the international economic system of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
Before joining Chatham House, Creon served in the UK Cabinet Office as director for international economic affairs in the National Security Secretariat and G7/G20 'sous sherpa', advising the UK Prime Minister on global economic policy issues.
Creon first joined the Cabinet Office in 2013 as director in the European and Global Issues Secretariat and designed the UK's global Anti-Corruption Summit in May 2016.
He was also the British deputy high commissioner in New Delhi from 2006 to 2009 and has served in senior positions in HM Treasury and the Bank of England.

Stefan Mair
Director, German Institute for International and Security Affairs, Germany

Since October 2020, Director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs and Executive Chairman of the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP).
2010-2020 Member of the Executive Board of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), 2007-2009 Research Director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), 1992-2007 and 2009-2010 research associate at SWP, until March 2001 head of the Middle East and Africa Research Division, 2001-2007 and 2009-2010 member of SWP's executive board.
1992 Doctorate, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich.
1989-1992 PhD scholarship at the IFO Institute for Economic Research, Munich, Developing Countries Department.

Paul Samson
President, Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), Canada

Paul Samson is President of the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI). He previously held senior positions in the Government of Canada including assistant deputy minister-level roles with Global Affairs Canada and Finance Canada, and as associate deputy minister with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. Among other positions, Paul served as Director for Egypt, Canada, and Ethiopia at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and as Canada's deputy for finance at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum. He was co-chair of the G20 Framework Working Group on the global economy during five different presidencies. Earlier in his career, Paul worked with Mikhail Gorbachev at Green Cross International in Geneva and held fellowships with Pacific Northwest Labs, the Peace Research Institute, Oslo and was a research fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Paul completed a Doctorate and an M.A. in international relations at the Graduate Institute, Geneva, and a B.A. at the University of British Columbia. He completed post-doctoral studies in global environment assessment at Harvard University./p>

Rohinton P. Medhora
Distinguished fellow and former president, Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), Canada

Rohinton P. Medhora is a CIGI distinguished fellow and former president of CIGI (2012-2022). He also served on CIGI's former International Board of Governors from 2009 to 2014. Previously, he was vice president of programs at Canada's International Development Research Centre. His fields of expertise are monetary and trade policy, international economic relations and development economics.

Rohinton sits on The Lancet and Financial Times Commission on Governing Health Futures 2030, as well as the Commission on Global Economic Transformation, co-chaired by Nobel economics laureates Michael Spence and Joseph Stiglitz. He is chair of the board of the Institute for New Economic Thinking, vice-chair at the McLuhan Foundation and is on the advisory boards of the WTO Chairs Programme, UNU-MERIT and Global Health Centre. From 2021 to 2022, Rohinton chaired the Ontario Workplace Recovery Advisory Committee.

Rohinton received his doctorate in economics in 1988 from the University of Toronto, where he subsequently taught. In addition to his Ph.D., Rohinton earned his B.A. and M.A. at the University of Toronto, where he majored in economics.

He has published extensively in professional and non-technical journals and has produced several books: Finance and Competitiveness in Developing Countries (Routledge, 2001) and Financial Reform in Developing Countries (Macmillan, 1998), which he co-edited with José Fanelli. In 2013, he was co-editor of Canada-Africa Relations: Looking Back, Looking Ahead, which is volume 27 in the influential Canada Among Nations book series. In 2014, he co-edited International Development: Ideas, Experience, and Prospects (Oxford University Press) and Crisis and Reform: Canada and the International Financial System, which is volume 28 in the Canada Among Nations book series.

Carlos Ivan Simonsen Leal
President, Getulio Vergas Foundation (FGV), Brazil

Professor Carlos Ivan Simonsen Leal is President of the Getulio Vargas Foundation since August 2000. In 1980, he graduated in Civil Engineering from the Engineering School of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), but opted for an academic life and graduated in Mathematical Economics from the "Instituto de Matemática Pura e Aplicada", in 1982. Doctor degree at the "Escola de Pós Graduação em Economia" - EPGE of Getulio Vargas Foundation (1980-1982) and obtained the title of Doctor in Economics from Princeton University (USA) in 1986. At FGV, he held the following positions: director of FGV Business, 1992-4; general director of EPGE, 1994-7; and vice-president of FGV, 1997-2000.

ONG Keng Yong
Executive Deputy Chairman, S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Singapore

Ambassador ONG Keng Yong is Executive Deputy Chairman of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore since November 2014.  Concurrently, he is Ambassador-at-Large at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs, non-resident High Commissioner to Pakistan and non-resident Ambassador to Iran.  Mr. Ong also serves as Chairman of the Singapore International Foundation (SIF).
Mr. Ong was High Commissioner of Singapore to Malaysia from July 2011 to October 2014.  He served as Secretary-General of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), based in Jakarta, Indonesia, for five years from January 2003.
He was Singapore's High Commissioner to India and concurrently Ambassador to Nepal from 1996 to 1998.  From September 1998 to December 2002, he was Press Secretary to the then Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr. Goh Chok Tong. From 2008 to 2011, he served as Director of the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) in the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore.

Kawano Katsutoshi
Former Chief of Staff, the Japan Self-Defense Forces, Japan

Admiral Katsutoshi Kawano(Retired) is former Chief of Staff at the Japan Self-Defense Forces. A graduate of National Defense Academy with a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Admiral Kawano was commissioned as a surface warfare officer in 1979. He earned a master's degree in International Relations from Tsukuba University in 1990. He is also a graduate of Command and Staff Course at the U.S. Naval War College.
Admiral Kawano's career as a surface warfare officer includes assignments aboard JS Haruna, JS Shirane, and JS Oyodo as Commanding Officer from August 1992 to August 1993. His fleet command assignments include Commander, Escort Division 3; Commander, Escort Flotilla 3; Commander, Marine Warfare Force; Commander Fleet Escort Force; and, Commander in Chief, Self-Defense Fleet prior to assuming his previous post as Chief of Staff, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force on 26 July 2012. Some of the most notable responsibilities he has held ashore are Director General, Administration Department MSO; Director General, Operations and Plans Department MSO; and Vice Chief of Staff. Admiral Kawano had served as the 5th Chief of Staff from October 14, 2014 until his retirement on April 1, 2019.

Jia Qingguo
Professor and former Dean of the School of International Studies of Peking University

Jia Qingguo is professor and former dean of the School of International Studies of Peking University. He is also Director of the Institute for China-US People-to-People Exchange and Director of the Center for China and Global Governance at Peking University. He received his Ph.D. from Cornell University in 1988. He has taught in University of Vermont, Cornell University, University of California at San Diego, University of Sydney in Australia as well as Peking University. He was a research fellow at the Brookings Institution between 1985 and 1986, a visiting professor at the University of Vienna in 1997 and a CNAPS fellow at the Brookings Institution between 2001 and 2002. He is a member of the Standing Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. He is also Vice President of the Chinese American Studies Association, Vice President of China International Relations Studies Association, and Vice President of Chinese Japanese Studies Association. He is serving on the editorial board of more than a dozen established domestic and international academic journals. He has published extensively on U.S.-China relations, Northeast Asia, relations between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan, Chinese foreign policy and Chinese politics.

Rufus Yerxa
Senior Advisor, McLarty Associates; Former Deputy Director General of WTO, United States

Rufus Yerxa has been a prominent figure in international trade policy for more than four decades. He served as Deputy US Trade Representative under two Administrations and spent more than a decade as Deputy Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO). He has also served in the private sector as a trade lawyer and as head of a leading business association in Washington.  His areas of expertise include the functioning of the WTO system and other international agreements, bilateral and regional economic relations, international investment matters and US trade law.
Ambassador Yerxa began his government career as a lawyer with the US International Trade Commission before joining the staff of the Committee on Ways and Means of the US House of Representatives, where he served as Staff Director of its Subcommittee on Trade.
From 1989 to 1995 he served as Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) with the rank of Ambassador, first as head of USTR's Permanent Mission to the GATT in Geneva under President George H.W. Bush and subsequently as Washington Deputy during the Clinton Administration. He was instrumental in negotiations to replace GATT with the WTO in 1995 and to create the original NAFTA accord (now USMCA).
After leaving government service he practiced law for a major US firm in Brussels. In 2002 he was appointed to serve as Deputy Director General of the WTO. During his long tenure he helped to broaden its membership and strengthen various aspects of its rulemaking function.
From 2016 to 2021, he was President of the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC), a Washington-based industry association focused on expanding global markets for US companies.
Ambassador Yerxa is a native of Washington State. He holds a BA from the University of Washington, a JD from the Seattle University and an LLB in International Law from the University of Cambridge.

Fabrice Pothier
Chief Executive Officer, Rasmussen Global, Denmark

Fabrice Pothier has 20 years of experience in strategic affairs and international public policy. As CEO, he has led Rasmussen Global to become a prime independent political consultancy in Europe. Mr. Pothier advises on a pro-bono basis Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his team on issues related to security guarantees and international support. He co-founded the Transatlantic Commission on Election Integrity bringing together leading figures from politics and technology including Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Michael Chertoff, Joe Biden, and Nick Clegg.

Mr. Pothier served as NATO Director of Policy Planning from 2010 to 2016, for two successive Secretary Generals, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, and Jens Stoltenberg. While at NATO, he developed some of the Alliance's most consequential initiatives such as the Readiness Action Plan and Smart Defence and played an active role in NATO's operation in Libya and response to the 2014/15 Ukraine war.

Before his time at NATO, Pothier founded Carnegie Europe, part of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, which became one of Europe's leading foreign policy think-tanks. Mr. Pothier is widely published and quoted in the international media, and regularly speaks on international affairs and security issues. As senior defence consulting fellow at the International Institute of Strategic Studies, he writes on issues such as European politics, defence innovation and technology, and transatlantic relationships.
"Today, all large international companies should have a foreign service. And if they don't have one yet, they should call us" - Fabrice Pothier

Recent engagements;
France Decides: First Round Special April 10 - Bloomberg
Nato has 'moral and strategic responsibility to push back' over Russia-Ukraine invasion, says former Nato policy director - Channel 4 News
How long can Russia afford to keep this war going? - former NATO policy director Fabrice Pothier
Cyber warfare - call it what it is - Politico Europe
Macron eyes pivotal role for France in Europe and beyond (iiss.org)

Mary Robinson
First woman President of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; Chair of The Elders; a passionate advocate for gender equality, women's participation in peace-building, human dignity and climate justice

Mary Robinson is a founding member of The Elders and has served as Chair since 2018. In that time, she has addressed the UN Security Council on multiple occasions and has met with world leaders to promote global peace, climate action and ethical leadership, including President Ramaphosa in South Africa, Pope Francis in the Vatican, President Emmanuel Macron in Paris and President Xi Jinping in Beijing. She was the first woman President of Ireland (1990-1997) and is a former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (1997-2002). A tireless advocate for justice, she was President of Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative from 2002 to 2010. Between 2013 and 2016, she served as the UN Secretary General's Special Envoy in three roles; first for the Great Lakes region of Africa, then on Climate Change until the historic Paris Agreement on Climate Change in 2015 and then as Special Envoy on El Niño and Climate. She was appointed Adjunct Professor for Climate Justice at Trinity College Dublin in 2019.

The Rt Hon William Hague
Former Foreign Secretary, UK

The Rt Hon Lord Hague of Richmond, William Hague, served for 26 years in the British House of Commons until he stood down in 2015. In that time, he served in many senior roles, including Leader of the House of Commons, but is best known as the Leader of the Conservative party, 1997-2001, and First Secretary of State and Foreign Secretary, 2010-2014. He now pursues a wide range of business and charitable activities, and is a well-known writer of historical biographies and a columnist of The Times. In November 2020 Lord Hague became Chair of the Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales.

Ignasius Jonan
Former Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Former Minister of Transportation, Indonesia

Ignasius Jonan served as Minister of Transportation from 2014-2016 and Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources from 2016-2019.
He graduated from Airlangga University with a bachelor's degree in accounting in 1986 and received his master's degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in 2005. After serving as CEO of the government-owned investment bank PT. Bahana Pembinaan Usaha Indonesia (2001-2006), he became a managing director at Citigroup Investment Banking (2006-2008) and CEO of the Indonesian National Railways (KAI) (2009-2014). He serves as Commissioner of Unilever Indonesia and Chairman of Anabatic. He is also Chairman of Marsh McLennan Indonesia since 2022 and Senior Advisor to Accenture Indonesia since 2021.