There are few places where the NATO Secretary General will cross paths with women’s rights activists from West Africa and business leaders from Southeast Asia in the hotel lift – while at the same time, away from the cameras, Foreign Ministers are holding confidential talks about progress in the Middle East. The Munich Security Conference is one of these places.

With more than 700 participants, some 50 Heads of State and Government, about 150 Ministers, and countless representatives of NGOs, think-tanks and businesses, the Munich Security Conference (MSC) is one of the world’s most important meetings for international dialogue on security policy. Every year in and around the Hotel Bayerischer Hof in Munich, it offers a unique platform for high-level discussions of current security and foreign policy challenges with representatives from the worlds of politics and business as well as international organisations.

Core issues and “diplomatic speed-dating” at the MSC

Alongside key high-profile events such as speeches and panels, the MSC is first and foremost an opportunity for diplomatic speed-dating. There is hardly anywhere else that offers the chance to speak to so many fellow politicians, members of civil society and security policy practitioners in such quick succession, or to strike up informal conversations with them in the bustling corridors of the venue. This year’s event will focus on peace efforts surrounding the illegal Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and on the situation in the Middle East as well as on transatlantic relations, cooperation with the new US administration and work to strengthen NATO in light of the current challenges facing Europe and the world.

Foreign Minister Baerbock:

The Foreign Minister’s agenda also includes the traditional meeting with a large delegation from the US Congress. Not least in light of the recent handover of power in the United States, this is an important opportunity to further strengthen our close bilateral relations and keep the channels of communication open. The Foreign Minister will also join her Polish counterpart Radosław Sikorski to honour former President of the German Bundestag Prof. Süssmuth with the German-Polish Prize for her life’s work. This prize dates back to the German-Polish Treaty on Good Neighbourliness of 17 June 1991. As usual, the G7 Foreign Ministers will meet on the margins of the MSC. This will be the first such meeting hosted by Canada, which holds the G7 Presidency for 2025.

There will also be a wide range of bilateral and multilateral discussions, both informal and planned, such as a meeting hosted by Foreign Minister Baerbock on approaches to feminist foreign policy for the people of Syria. At a panel discussion titled Europole? The Old Continent’s New Geopolitical Role, the Foreign Minister and her UK, French and Polish counterparts will discuss how Europe should respond to a changing world in the context of current conflicts.

Multipolarization – a changing world order

“Multipolarization” is the theme of the 2025 MSC. It is also the title of an accompanying report, whose authors write that shifts in the global balance of power mean that more players than ever before now have a major role in the international order. Even if the world has not yet become multipolar, we are already living in a world of “multipolarization”, they say. This idea will be addressed in numerous discussions at the MSC and is also reflected in the broad spectrum of countries and perspectives among the invitees.