Posted on 03 December 2018
Vassilios Skouris visited the Historical Archives of the European Union on 26 September 2018 and was interviewed, in the framework of the Archives’ oral history initiative, by Urška Šadl, Professor in the Department of Law at the European University Institute. The video recording of this interview is available here.
The interview is part of the oral history project “Leaders Beyond the State” and can be consulted by researchers interested in the history of European integration. It provides us with an insight into President Skouris’ career, from the early years of higher education in Germany to his experiences as an academic, and tackles in particular the period in which he served in the Court of Justice of the European Union, first as judge (1999-2015) and then as President (2003-2015).
The interview shifts from the private to the public dimension of his working life, as well as from the Greek dimension to the European one. It analyses Skouris’ education, academic career, and political experiences as well as his activity serving as judge and then President of the Court. Skouris also talks about the history of Greece and its accession to the European Economic Community and compares the enlargement of 1981 with that of 2004, especially with regards to the changes experienced within the Court of Justice.
Within the series of events “Leaders Beyond the State”, former Presidents of European institutions are invited to the European University Institute for a public interview to record their experiences as leaders in transnational government. The series of interviews is organized by the School of Transnational Governance at the EUI, in collaboration with the Department of History and Civilisation and the Historical Archives of the European Union.
The video recording of this public event is available here.