Vaira Vīķe-FreibergaEvery podcast appearance, updated as new ones drop

Why did the Baltic States and other countries of Central and Eastern Europe choose to join NATO after the end of the Cold War? Why was the 2004 enlargement of NATO known as the “Big Bang” enlargement? How do NATO’s smaller member countries contribute to the Alliance? In this episode, former President of Latvia Dr Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga shares her extraordinary life story – from fleeing Latvia as a child at the end of the Second World War, to building a life in Canada for 50 years, to becoming President of Latvia after the country re-established its independence in 1991. Dr Vīķe-Freiberga reflects on her personal experiences, her country’s journey to becoming a NATO member in 2004 (alongside Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia), and on the future of NATO.

In commemoration of World Refugee Day, Patrick Youssef, Regional Director for Africa of the International Committee of the Red Cross and an old friend of Club de Madrid, is discussing with Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga, President of Latvia from 1999 to 2007 –the first female head of a former Soviet bloc state–, and former President of Club de Madrid. She was a refugee herself and fled from war-torn Latvia to spend more than 50 years in exile, to return afterwards and become President. Our two protagonists talk about current refugee crises, forcibly displaced persons around the world, migrants' rights, war-related humanitarian problems, exclusive narratives towards refugees, and possible solutions.