- IN PERSON EVENT-

WITH VIRTUAL ATTENDANCE OPTION

Most of the world watched on in shock as the authoritarian leader of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, followed through on his threats and Russia unilaterally invaded Ukraine under the guise of ‘peacekeeping’ after first recognizing two breakaway statelets. This act of war ended the record of more than 70 years of no international warfare in the European continent. In response, many Ukrainians have risen up in armed resistance and most Western powers have imposed sanctions on Russia while also providing military and humanitarian aid to Ukrainians. However, the invasion has not been curtailed to date and the humanitarian cost of the war in refugees, IDPs, etc. is rapidly rising. Moreover, the War in Ukraine is likely to create wheat shortages at a time when, due largely to the pandemic, food prices have already been on a meteoric rise – eventually contributing to food precarity around the globe. Indeed, the impacts of this war are prone to reverberating across the world for the foreseeable future. As such, attempting to understand this war – its drivers, its costs, and its potential resolution – is necessary.

Join us for an interdisciplinary panel featuring Dr. Kyle Longley (Professor of History and the Director of the War & Society Program), Dr. Mateo Jarquin (Assistant Professor of History),  Dr. Hilmi Ulas (Assistant Professor of Peace Studies), and Dr. Andrea Molle (Assistant Professor of Political Science) to discuss some key questions for understanding the Russian Invasion of Ukraine. Our experts will examine the dynamics of the Cold War, some of which (such as the Russia-NATO relations) have endured to date, in order to shed some light on the motivations that have driven Putin’s Russia to this invasion. Meanwhile, the panelists will also ponder how a history of Russian aggression in the South Caucasus and in Eastern Ukraine, for which there was little accountability, may have emboldened the use of military force for diplomacy in the case of Russia. In addition, the panel of experts will also evaluate whether the armed resistance in Ukraine, the nonviolent resistance in Russia, or a mixture of international diplomacy and sanctions may provide the most constructive resolution to this invasion. Ultimately, this event hopes to shed some light on why the War in Ukraine is taking place right now, what the costs of this war are likely to be, and what the future of the conflict may look like.

The panel will be moderated by Dr. Claudia Fuentes-Julio (Assistant Professor of Peace Studies) and will feature a directed discussion among the experts, followed by a Q&A session.