More than two years after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, there is no reprieve from violence and suffering. As Kremlin troops again forge past Ukrainian borders, experts have warned of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plan to prolong the war indefinitely, ignoring casualties even on the Russian front. Some of Ukraine’s neighbors in Eastern Europe worry about their own future, if Putin should turn his attention their way. Meanwhile, the Russian leader has made an ominous visit to Pyongyang to reinforce his alliance with the ruthless and unpredictable North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, and China appears willing to stand by him, too. What are Putin’s motivations and strategic objectives? Is NATO ready to stand up to him? Or do current political uncertainties in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and other Western democracies inevitably strengthen his hand?
This event is co-sponsored by the Free Speech Project (Georgetown University) and the Future of the Humanities Project (Georgetown University and Blackfriars Hall and Campion Hall, Oxford).
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons user kremlin.ru
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Anne Lonsdale is a British sinologist and higher education expert. She served as the president of the New Hall (now Murray Edwards College), University of Cambridge, from 1996 to 2008, pro-vice-chancellor from 1998 to 2003, and deputy vice-chancellor until 2008. She also served as secretary-general of the Central European University and joined the team creating Nazarbayev University in Astana, Kazakhstan.
Peter Róna is a Hungarian opposition figure. In 2022 he was the joint candidate of the opposition for the office of the president of Hungary. Previously he served as the CEO of the First Hungary Fund and taught law at Eötvös Lóránd University in Budapest. He became a fellow of Blackfriars Hall, Oxford in 2011, where he teaches economics and researches the philosophical foundations of the social sciences.
Steven Pifer is the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. His more than 25 years with the United States Department of State focused on U.S. relations with the former Soviet Union and Europe, as well as arms control and security issues. In addition to Ukraine, he served at the U.S. embassies in Warsaw, Moscow, and London.
Michael Scott (moderator) is senior dean, fellow of Blackfriars Hall, Oxford, college adviser for postgraduate students, and a member of the Las Casas Institute. He also serves as senior adviser to the president of Georgetown University. Scott previously was the pro-vice-chancellor at De Montfort University and founding vice-chancellor of Wrexham Glyndwr University.
Sanford J. Ungar (moderator), president emeritus of Goucher College, is director of the Free Speech Project at Georgetown University, which documents challenges to free expression in American education, government, and civil society. Director of the Voice of America under President Bill Clinton, he was also dean of the American University School of Communication and is a former co-host of All Things Considered on NPR.
