Bucharest will host the 15th edition of Bucharest Forum on 19 and 20 November 2026 at the Palace of the Parliament. The forum is a platform for strategic dialogue between public institutions, the business community and international organisations in the region. Under the theme “On the Edge of Realignment”, the anniversary edition will address the shifts that are reshaping alliances, security and the global economy, as well as the options Romania and its regional neighbours have to strengthen their role in this context.
Organised by the Aspen Institute Romania and the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the event takes place under the High Patronage of the President of Romania.
Over two days, the forum will bring together perspectives from Europe, the transatlantic space, the Black Sea region and the Middle East. The debates will look at how geopolitical competition affects investment, access to technology, infrastructure and the ability of states to respond to new risks.
Confirmed guests include Annalena Baerbock, former foreign minister of Germany and former President of the UN General Assembly; Simon Coveney, Head of Global Affairs, EY EMEIA, and former deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Ireland; Mircea Geoană, President of the Aspen Institute Romania and former NATO Deputy Secretary General; Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council; and Gunther Krichbaum, Minister of State for Europe at the German Federal Foreign Office. Radmila Shekerinska, NATO Deputy Secretary General, will contribute through a pre-recorded video message.
They will be joined by General (ret.) Philippe Lavigne, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Transformation; David Cattler, former NATO Assistant Secretary General for Intelligence and Security and former director of the US Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA); Steven Feinberg, an official of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research at the US Department of State; and Mikołaj Dowgielewicz, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank.
The economic and financial dimension of the forum will bring together, among others, Anca Dragu, Governor of the National Bank of Moldova; Helge Berger, Deputy Director at the International Monetary Fund; Anna Akhalkatsi, World Bank Regional Director for European Union countries; Alexandru Petrescu, President of the Financial Supervisory Authority; Sergiu Manea, CEO of BCR and Vice-President of the Aspen Institute Romania; Mihaela Lupu, CEO of UniCredit Bank Romania; and Cristian Sporiș, Vice-President of Raiffeisen Bank Romania.
Participants in the technology and innovation debates include Vivian Schiller, CEO of the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation and founding executive director of Aspen Digital; Andrei Iancu, former director of the US Patent and Trademark Office and partner at Sullivan & Cromwell; Dan Cîmpean, head of Romania’s National Cyber Security Directorate (DNSC); and Adlen Chaikin, principal vulnerability analyst at Mastercard/Recorded Future.
Security, investment and technology: The decisions that will define the next decade
The agenda includes plenary sessions and high-level conversations on the relationship between security and markets, fiscal credibility, financial stability and the development of the defence industry. The discussions will also cover energy investment, dual-use technologies, the reconstruction of Ukraine and Romania’s role in regional infrastructure and supply networks. A session on the competitiveness of cities will bring together Ciprian Ciucu, Mayor of Bucharest, and Antoine Armand, Mayor of Annecy and former French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industry.
The second day will focus on Europe’s competitiveness, cybersecurity and the economic implications of new trade corridors. The debates will examine relations between Europe and the Gulf states, the effects of Middle East conflicts on transport and energy, and the opportunities that artificial intelligence offers Romania and Central and Eastern Europe.
The programme also includes discussions on the contribution of culture to Romania’s international reputation, innovation in health and longevity, and the role of natural capital in economic development. Guests at these sessions include Constantin Chiriac, President of the Sibiu International Theatre Festival; Attila Kim, Commissioner of the Romanian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale; Iulian Trandafir, Vice-President and Regional General Manager for Central and Eastern Europe at Cencora; and Christoph Promberger, Executive Director of the Conservation Carpathia Foundation.
Related sessions will address the security of critical infrastructure in the Black Sea, the infrastructure needed to develop artificial intelligence in Europe, connectivity as a tool for moving closer to the European Union, and the obstacles that slow the move of defence technologies from prototype to use.
The institutional partners of the edition include the Chamber of Deputies, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Energy, the Bucharest City Hall, the National Cyber Security Directorate, the National Energy Regulatory Authority, the National Authority for Administration and Regulation in Communications, the Financial Supervisory Authority and the Employers’ Organisation of the Defence Industry.
Now in its 15th edition, Bucharest Forum continues the dialogue between public decision-makers, business leaders and experts, in search of answers to international transformations and directions for cooperation in the coming years.
More information about the event, the guests and the provisional agenda is available on the website of the Aspen Institute Romania. Energynomics is a media partner of Bucharest Forum 2026.