Programme

Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation Maksim Sokolov. Born in Leningrad on September 29, 1968. Completed his national service in the army in 1987–1989. Graduated from St. Petersburg State University Faculty of Economics in 1991. He also studied at the university’s Faculty of Law from 1989 to 1991. From 1991 to 1993, Mr. Sokolov taught at the St. Petersburg State University Faculty of Economics. From 1992–1999, he was General Director of ROSSI Concern. From 1999 to 2004, Mr. Sokolov was General Director of Korporatsia C. From 2004 to 2009, he served as Chairman of the Committee for Investment and Strategic Projects of St. Petersburg. In 2009, Mr. Sokolov became a member of the Government of St. Petersburg: Chairman of the Committee for Economic Development, Industrial Policy and Trade. On December 4, 2009, he was named Director of the Department of Industry and Infrastructure of the Government of the Russian Federation. On 21 May, 2012, Mr. Sokolov was appointed Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation by Presidential Executive Order No. 660. Maksim Sokolov has been awarded the Ribbon of the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland” 2nd class and the Governor of St. Petersburg Badge “For the Humanization of the St. Petersburg school”. He has three sons.

Kostas Isychos was born in Buenos Aires in 1957. From his early years, he belonged to the left-wing youth movement in Argentina. After the military coup, his family moved from Argentina to Canada, where he graduated from the Political and Economic Sciences Faculty of York University. In 1980, Kostas Isychos moved to Greece. He worked for Olympic Airlines, was a trades union activist and Vice-President of the Civil Aviation Trades Union Association. In 2006, he was elected Vice-President of the Athens Trades Union Centre. Member of the Greek Committee of solidarity with Greek origin citizens of Argentina and Chile who were killed or went missing in the 1970s. One of the founders and a member of the political secretariat of the left coalition of parties SYRIZA, responsible for foreign and defence policy, as well as security forces. The epicenter of his interests consists in international seminars on the foreign policy of such countries as Finland, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Spain, Cuba, Italy and others. He was invited as an international observer to the elections in South Africa, during the elections of Nelson Mandela and to elections in Venezuela. Russian-Greek relations are among his priorities.

EDUCATION DEC. 2000 – DEC. 2003: Doctor of Philosophy in East European History, University of Cologne OCT. 1992 – SEPT. 1993: London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Master of Science (Econ) APR. 1989 – SEPT. 1992: Studies at the University of Cologne and at the Volgograd State University, USSR CAREER OVERVIEW JUN. 2007 – PRESENT: Chief Executive Officer, Association of European Businesses in the Russian Federation (AEB) JUL. 2001 – JUN. 2007: Advisor, Foreign Policy to the Party Executive of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), Berlin OCT. 2001 – APR. 2005: Lecturer, Institute for East European Studies, Free University, Berlin JULY 1999 – JUNE 2001: International Secretary, Young Socialists, Bonn/ Berlin DEC. 1998 – DEC. 2003: Chairman, German Youth Council (DNK) JULY 1996 – JUNE 1999: Managing Director, Social Democratic Youth Organisation in the Rhineland, Cologne SEPT. 1995 – AUG. 1996 Research in the Russian Archives, Moscow MAY 1995 – MAY 1996 Project Manager, Association for Social Security Policy and Research (GVG), Cologne APR. 1994 – MAY 1995 Clerk, City Administration of Cologne PUBLICATIONS Monography and articles

Alexander N. Shokhin was born 25 December, 1951. Graduated from the Moscow State University in 1974. Doctor of Economics, Professor. Twice, in 1991-1994 and in 1998, Mr. Shokhin held the post of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation. In 1991-1994 he also held positions of Minister of Labor, Minister of Economics, Chairman of the Russian Agency for International Cooperation and Development. From 1994 to 2002 – Deputy of the State Duma, with the posts of First Vice Chairman of the State Duma, leader of the Duma party bloc 'Our Home is Russia', Head of the Duma Committee on Credit Institutions and Capital Markets. Since 1995 - President of the National Research University – Higher School of Economics. From 2002 to 2006 – Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Investment Group "Renaissance Capital". From 2005 to 2009 – member of the RF Public Chamber. Since 2005 – President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs. Mr. Shokhin is a member of several deliberative bodies under the Russian President and Government. He is also an independent director on the Boards of several companies, including ALROSA, Russian Railways, TMK and others.