Security, Human Rights and EU Defence issues take center stage at the IISS screening of Europe At Sea in London

The IISS and Women in International Security UK (WIIS-UK) organised a private screening of the documentary Europe at Sea (2017). The documentary follows Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, as she contends with Europe’s pressing migration and security challenges. The film was followed by a panel discussion with Annalisa Piras, director of the film, Virginia Comolli, senior fellow for Security and Development at the IISS and organiser of the event, Sophia Besch, a research fellow at the Centre for European Reform (CER), Jessica Hagen-Zanker, a research fellow leading the migration research portfolio at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI),Steve Valdez-Symonds, the Refugee and Migrant Rights Programme Director at Amnesty International UK. The discussion mostly focused on the migration crisis in Europe and the EU's response to the situation. The audience was interested about Federica Mogherini's claim that "saving lives is not a pull factor". Steve Valdez further expressed the fact that "our response to the migration crisis is threatening our legitimacy in putting forward human rights standards". The debate also addressed feminism, and whether Federica Mogherini's difficult role was inhibited by the fact that she was a woman. Annalisa Piras expressed her belief that Mogherini represents "an important step for women in diplomacy, for women in general", reinforced by Mary Kaldor's claim that "too often in war negotiations, there are no women sitting at the table, even though they are a tremendous force for peace." To Sophia Besch, the current situation offers Federica Mogherini "renewed opportunities to implement decisive policies". The discussion ended around an assessment of Federica Mogherini's achievements so far: according to Sophia Besch, Mogherini and her cabinet "have over delivered, their achievements in bringing together the EU 28 foreign policies has gone much farther than anyone would have ever expected".