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Corrado Pirzio-Biroli, European diplomat, lecturer and author - With Marc Pierini 01/04/2025 - 19h30 | Conférence apéritif

--- CONFERENCE IN ENGLISH ---
(debate -Q&A- possible in French)

Corrado Pirzio-Biroli
European diplomat, lecturer and author

and Marc Pierini
European diplomat, lecturer and author
Senior fellow at Carnegie Europe

« Unmasking the Middle East conflict in the Trump era »


In presenting his book “Hidden Truths of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”, Commander Corrado Pirzio-Biroli describes the genesis of the partition of Palestine, the hostilities, terrorism and war crimes and coercion that followed.

He also outlines the causes and motives of the conflict, Israel’s occupation policy and failing democracy, U.S. Middle-East politics and defence strategy and the role of its evangelist and Jewish lobbies. He then dwells on rules, objectives and peace proposals, and suggests a way out.

His approach is revisionist. It notably takes into account press accounts in Hebrew and the views expressed by Jewish academia teaching within and without Israel after the opening of Israel’s official archives. The resulting picture is quite different from most western publications, which he blames of self-censorship.

In particular, he denounces a series of myths about Israel, albeit proven wrong.

As Israeli peace negotiator, Daniel Levy concluded: “I will never have security until the Palestinians have security and are denied equal rights”. Palestinian independence remains the crux of the matter.

Corrado’s presentation dwells also on the legal and institutional aspects of the dispute and on President Trump’s role in feeding and potential, albeit unlikely, capacity of stopping it.

Corrado Pirzio-Biroli will be interviewed by his friend, Marc Pierini, former EU Ambassador to Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, Libya, Turkey.


EXPRESS BIO :
Corrado Pirzio-Biroli
• European diplomat of Italian-German origin
• Degree in Economics (Rome) and post-graduate diplomas from the ISS (The Hague) in economic planning and industrial development programming
• 1944-1945: interned in a Nazi orphanage
• 1968-1970: Advisor to the Sudanese government and study fellow in the Netherlands and Italy
• 1971-2005: Official of the European Commission (economic advisor in Washington, advisor to the President of the Commission on budget, finance and energy, then deputy-head of division for the European Economic Area, Minister and Chargé d’Affaires in Washington, Ambassador in Vienna to Austria, the United Nations and the OSCE, Chief of Staff - agriculture and fisheries - in Brussels, etc.)
• Since 2006: Co-founder and CEO of the Rural Investment Support for Europe (RISE) foundation
• 2010-2013: President of the European Landowners Organization and Honorary President since 2013
• Lecturer and author in 4 languages on international economics, East-West and North-South relations, European integration, common agricultural and trade policies and renewable energies
• Published a book about of his great-grandfather, Admiral A. von Tirpitz in WWI and Weimar (2019) and his family saga of anti-Nazi and antifascist resistance, “Prisonniers de sang” (2022)

Marc Pierini
• Master's degree in Development Economics (University of Aix-en-Provence)
• 1973-1976: Founder and manager of the economic consultancy company Eurodelta (Brussels)
• 1976-2012: European diplomat (Advisor to the Commissioner for Development; Advisor to the Delegation in Washington; Advisor to the Commissioner for North-South Relations; Ambassador to Morocco, Syria, Tunisia, Libya (n.r.) and Turkey; First Coordinator for the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership; Negotiator for the release of state hostages in Libya)
• Since 2012: Senior fellow at Carnegie Europe, the European branch of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Washington D.C.), where he has published some 260 articles on issues concerning the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, Turkey, the Middle East, NATO and regional conflicts
• Is regularly published and interviewed by the written and audiovisual media
• Author of 3 geopolitical essays: “Le prix de la liberté” (2008), “Télégrammes diplomatiques” (2010) and “Où va la Turquie” (2013)


Welcome: 7 pm; Conference: 7:30 pm; Drink and cocktail: 8:45 pm.
Book sale and signing session after the conference.
PRESENTATION IN ENGLISH BUT DEBATE POSSIBLE IN FRENCH.