Keeping Channels Open
Budget
€15,000
EP Access
0
accredited persons
Staff
3
1.5 FTE
EU Grants
None
Mission & Goals
Keeping Channels Open is a cross border dialogue forum & network promoting cooperation and solutions to common challenges between UK, EU and US stakeholders. The initiative, supported by Friedrich Naumann Foundation, has been operational since summer 2020. Our overall goals are to support channels of dialogue and strategic alignment between politicians and experts in UK, US and Europe, facilitating joint solutions to big challenges, and plugging gaps in cooperation left by Brexit and the rise of nationalism, populism and polarisation. By hosting public and private events, our goals are to prevent UK drift from European partners and shore up Western unity despite disruption, domestic challenges and interference. We aim to promote an alliance of democratic and responsible security actors and best practise in foreign policy and defence, good governance, political ethics, accountability, representation and rights protection.
EU Legislative Interests
International Partnerships; Development Policy; Foreign Policy instruments; Security policy; CSDP; UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement; EU enlargement policy, C-FIMI/counter disinformation, Strategic Communications; Democratic Resilience agenda
Communication Activities
We host many roundtables on topics of concern to EU and the region, providing platforms for EU speakers and European professionals, as well as British and American stakeholders. These have been attended by MEPs and European Commission Officials as speakers. Dates & Topics: Sept 14, 2020 - Post-Brexit UK-EU Relations & Global Britain Nov 17, 2020 - Managing Culture Wars, Tribalism and Disinformation Feb 16, 2021 - Connecting City to City / Region to Region May 25, 2021 - US-UK-EU Foreign Policy and Security July 12, 2021 - Summits Review: US-UK-EU Foreign Policy and Security March 1, 2022 - UK-EU-US Priorities and the Russia Challenge April 26, 2022 - Ukraine: Hard & Soft Power Responses June 22, 2022 - Russian War Crimes Investigations Nov 14, 2022 - Moving Forward: Northern Ireland Protocol and UK-EU Relations March 28, 2023 - Business Roundtable on UK-EU relations: KCO-British Chamber of Commerce April 27, 2023 - European Associations Summit: Discussion on repairing UK-EU ties June, 2023 - European & translatantic engagement with China - panel event at FNF HQ July 2023 - Report on EuroAtlantic Stability, available on website homepage August 2023 - Behind-the-scenes research and recommendations to UK FCDO on cross-border cooperation June-August 2024 - Co-organisation of high level conference at St George's House, Windsor Castle Sept 2024 - Participation in UK-EU review with UK Mission Sept 2024 - Contributed to Strategy and roadmap of high level UK-EU Stakeholder group March 2025 - Co-organisation of Democracy in Crisis seminars and roundtables, producing recommendations on political solutions Aug 2025-Feb 2026- Consultancy support to European Partnership for Democracy Support to new European Centre for Democratic Resilience, and NATO centre for democratic resilience We also give public interviews and write articles (The Independent, New European, Guardian, The Article, Euronews) and host a website and Twitter account. We plan to host more networking events, podcasts, webinars and conferences, and UK-EU-US public and private seminars on key themes including transatlantic relations, countering populism, autocracy and disinformation.
Interests Represented
Does not represent commercial interests
Member Of
Frontline Club, European Movement, Chatham House, Press Club brussels, Grassroots for Europe, Pro-Europa, Wilfred Maartens
Organisation Members
Friedrich Naumann Foundation www.keepingchannelsopen.com/about
Commissioner Meetings
No recorded meetings with EU commissioners.