فريدريش نومان ستيفتونج

First Arab-European Liberal Forum Held in Cairo Cairo was the host to the first Arab-European Liberal Forum on the Basics of Liberalism. Some one hundred delegates from both sides of the Mediterranean Sea gathered in the Egyptian capital from May 16 to 18, 2013 for discussions on the basics of liberalism and current political developments in this part of the world. The event was cosponsored by the Regional Office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty (FNF) and the European Liberal Forum (ELF) in Brussels. Bridging the Gap – the organizers had chosen the title of the conference with hindsight as the objective of the political dialogue was to identify where liberals from Europe and the Arab world agree and where this is not the case. In special sessions, the participants – among them leaders of political parties, academics and civil society leaders - dealt with the basic liberal values in the course of history, the role of religion in their respective societies and liberal economic programs to tackle the challenges of a globalized world. "It may sound surprising, but I have seen hardly any differences between the programs of the liberal parties in Europe and the Arab world", said Alexandra Thein, member of the European Parliament and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE).