The interview started with a question on the interviewee’s educational background and early professional experiences. It went on with questions on circumstances and reasons leading to the interviewee’s entry into the European Commission. Regarding this, special emphasis was placed on interviewee’s attitudes towards European integration. After that, the interviewee spoke about his activities and relations within the European Commission, especially the DG Research. In this context, his comments on the evolution and major achievements of that DG and the Commissioners that dealt with it are particularly valuable; comments on external events that left their mark on that DG, including the Chernobyl disaster and the end of the Cold War, are also worthy of note.