Connecting the Dots: Energy, Technology, and Trade

Economics and geopolitics are increasingly intertwined, with energy, technology, and trade emerging as pivotal arenas of both contest and collaboration. Historically, sound economic practices often had to navigate turbulent political landscapes; today, effective geopolitics must address difficult economic instincts, from protectionism to unsustainable debt. Energy, technology and trade policy are profoundly shaped by societal dynamics and conflicts – conflict and policy are both causes and consequences. They are also widening existing divides. The concentrated ownership of artificial intelligence suggests that the victors of past industrial revolutions will dominate the Fourth Industrial Revolution, thereby centralising the economic landscape of the future. Concurrently, fossil fuels and nuclear energy remain integral to our energy mix. Each year seems to herald a new peak in oil production, and it is not the Global South that sustains this trend.

Is the rise of gated trading arrangements signalling the end of traditional globalisation, prioritising national interests over global cooperation? What implications might this have for the future of international trade? Could the sovereign bias on technology platforms ignite a fierce national backlash, challenging their influence and reshaping the landscape of digital governance? How do energy security and national security intersect, and in what ways can we anticipate countries to balance between energy-driven growth, peace, and security?

Scene Setter:

Davit Karapetyan, Secretary General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Armenia

Moderator:

Tamás Baranyi, Director for Strategy, Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, Hungary

Initiators:

Erik Solheim, Former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme

Violeta Bulc, Former European Commissioner for Transport, Slovenia

Sujan Chinoy, Director General, Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, India

Arvind Gupta, Head and Co-Founder, Digital India Foundation, India

Tian Huifang, Research Director, China-CEE Institute, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Hungary

Philip Pilkington, Senior Research Fellow, Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, Hungary

David Goldman, Deputy Editor, Asia Times; Washington Fellow, Claremont Institute, United States of America

Discussants:

Ashok Malik, Partner, The Asia Group, India

Ceyhun Emre Doğru, Managing Partner, CORPERA Consulting, Türkiye

Péter Kránitz, Senior Research Fellow, Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, Hungary

Carlos Roa, Contributing Editor, The National Interest, United States of America

Mentor Beqa, Executive Director, Sami Frashëri Institute, Albania

Naoyuki Yoshino, Professor Emeritus, Keio University, Japan