Restoring European economic leadership

On September 17, the Center on the United States and Europe (CUSE) at Brookings hosted Henri de Castries, head of the Institut Montaigne and AXA, for the 12th annual Raymond Aron Lecture. In his remarks, de Castries explored the challenges facing Europe and the transatlantic economy and offered perspectives on how Europe can restore economic and monetary leadership amid global volatility. As the head of one of the world’s largest insurance companies and chair of several public policy research institutions, de Castries applied his business experience to consider strategies for European leaders to emerge from the Greek crisis and the broader institutional turmoil within the eurozone. Following de Castries’s address, Brookings Senior Fellow and former Federal Reserve Vice Chair Donald Kohn offered remarks in response.

Henri de Castries has been the chairman and chief executive officer at AXA Group since 2010. Previously, he served in various senior executive positions within AXA after joining the company in 1989. He was elected chairman of the Paris-based think-tank Institut Montaigne in June 2015. Donald Kohn is a senior fellow in Economic Studies at Brookings and was vice chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve from 2006 to 2010.

Brookings President Strobe Talbott and Brookings Trustee Antoine van Agtmael provided welcoming remarks. Jim Hoagland, contributing editor of The Washington Post, introduced the session and moderate the discussion.

The Raymond Aron lecture series, named after the renowned scholar of post-war France, annually features leading French and American personalities speaking on current issues affecting the transatlantic relationship.

Join the conversation on Twitter using #EuroLeadership=”font-size:>