Arriving in Russia 01/07/2014

"The secret of politics? Make a good treaty with Russia."

Otto Von Bismarck during his term as Minister President of Prussia.

 

As one of my favourite diplomats emphasis Russia, so am I very intrigued and wary by the biggest country in the world. In the upcoming month I will have the pleasure to write different personal analytical articles and my very own blog for the Russian International Affairs Council. Europe in Russia blog will be mostly about Russian foreign policy viewed through the eyes of an European diplomat student and will be written for everybody that is interested in International relations. To start off the adventure, allow me to introduce myself as a Belgian citizen in the heart of the Russian Federation.

 

Currently I am a student at Geneva School of Diplomacy majoring in International Relations and Diplomacy. I always been quite studious and appreciate the opportunities to further my skills and knowledge in the area of negotiations, communication and security studies. Russian International Affairs Council has an excellent reputation for its work in these areas, and in particular to train young future leaders, making me a very happy intern here.

 

As a Bachelor senior at University of Brussels (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), I focused on human body science applied on sports. After four years at the VUB, I moved with my family for 1 year to Moscow where I learned Russian language, history and culture which soon became one of my passions. Within this year, I worked as a freelance writer and assistant for an Enterprise where I had the opportunity to meet international people who were helpful and convinced me to rethink my field of study. Realizing that the international environment is where I want to establish a professional career, I moved to the city where all nations around the world come together to based relations; Geneva. I believe, due to the city's international nature and multicultural tradition, Geneva offers the ideal location to establish relations in a relative neutral environment with a foreign population of 40%.

 

As current Student Body President of Geneva School of Diplomacy, I gained valuable experience working with people, who are experts in the diplomatic neighbourhood, and are willing to pass their knowledge to their students. The university focuses mainly on the important pillars in the diplomatic sphere; International relations, Law, Economics and other elective courses designed according to the students preferences.

 

On the base of previous experiences, I believe that an expert in international relations should also have high social and communication skills, this means being involved in many extracurricular activities inside an outside of your study or working sphere. As done by myself, it is important to clear your head once in a while; you only have one life; exploit it!   It is also important to understand and accept different sides and opinions, therefore I will be open for feedbacks and fruitful conversations.

 

Because of my familiarity with language and Russian/European bilingual policies, I believe that Europe in Russia blog can be an added value to all those who are interested in international relations and the way of working while living in Moscow for a young adult.

 

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