Belgium former Prime Minister Yves Leterme and the former Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Lamberto Zannier, attended the Future Leaders Executive Program (FLEP) over the weekend, organized by the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF).
Held in Istanbul, FLEP's guests last month had included former Austrian President Heinz Fischer and former British Defense Secretary Geoffrey William Hoon, and this month's first guest at the event in Istanbul has been Leterme.
Leterme, who also assumed the term presidency of the European Union during his prime ministry and after leaving office served as the Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), shared important information about his experiences.
"I think this is an excellent program to bring people with a good academic background and theoretical background to the reality of geopolitics," said Leterme, who has an active role in the management of companies such as TeleColumbus, Volkswagen and institutions such as UEFA, Kofi Annan Foundation, Club de Madrid, about FLEP.
"Whatever position they hold in the future, whether in public authority or private business operations, it's very important to have this concrete practical view of what the power game is like today and what major challenges the world is facing."
On the second day of the program this month, former Zannier met with participants. Zannier, who also served as the United Nations Undersecretary General for many years, stated that he is a great supporter of FLEP, which allows young people to communicate with each other.
"The FLEP program is a great opportunity for young people to get along with each other. Of course, I will also share all my expertise and experience with young people. While the world is going through difficult times, it is very important that young people at the beginning of their careers are as active as possible," Zannier said.
