Poland in South Africa

Two lectures were held at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) in Pretoria and the Brenthurst Foundation in Johannesburg on 9 July 2024. The next day, in cooperation with the South African Institute of International Affairs, a lecture was organized at the SAIIA headquarters at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. On 11 July 2024, the lectures were organized in cooperation with the European Union Delegation in Lesotho for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Relations of Lesotho and the Ministry of Defence and National Security of Lesotho. At the end of the visit, Dr Beata Górka-Winter gave a lecture on 12 July 2024 at the Institute of Peace and Leadership at the National University of Lesotho (NUL).

The subject of the lectures was the influence of geographical factors on the conduct of foreign policy. The lecture series was titled "Global challenges, Poland, the collective West, Africa". Dr Górka-Winter discussed issues related to the current political and security landscape of Poland and NATO's eastern flank, the main threats and challenges for the West, opportunities and cooperation with African countries within the EU and NATO - new initiatives and partnerships. The lectures covered, among others: issues concerning NATO-Ukraine relations, EU-Ukraine relations, the war in Ukraine, global security, Polish foreign policy, Africa-Russia relations, as well as the position of South Africa towards Russia's aggression against Ukraine. The lectures aroused great interest and attracted many participants. After the lecture, the audience discussed the content of the lecture and asked many questions.

Dr. Beata Górka-Winter is an analyst, doctor of social sciences in the field of political science, and a lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Warsaw. She is a long-time coordinator of the "International Security" program at the Polish Institute of International Affairs. Author of numerous publications on the security policy of NATO and EU countries, peacekeeping operations, security sector reforms. Lecturer at the University of Warsaw, the Vistula Academy of Finance and Business, the European Security and Defense College, the PISM Diplomatic Academy, the National School of Public Administration (KSAP), the European Diplomatic Academy. OSCE election observer in Kosovo and Ukraine. Member of the UN SSR Advisory Group and Security Sector Reform in the Southern Caucasus. Graduate of the University of Warsaw and the Jagiellonian University. Scholar of the Department of State (International Visitor Leadership Program), George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies, Institut des Hautes Etudes de Defense Nationale (IHDN) and Swedish National Defense College.

Photos: Grażyna Koornhof/Embassasy of the Republic of Poland in Pretoria/Delegation of the European Union in Lesotho