VUB looks back on a year of Russian-Ukrainian war
Debate brings interesting insights from expert speakers
On 22 February, the debate War in Ukraine: One Year On took place in Aula Q. VUB invited some leading experts to speak. Hugues Mingarelli is a former EU Ambassador to Ukraine, Dr Olga Oliker is programme director for Europe and Central Asia at the International Crisis Group and Dr Benedetta Berti is head of policy planning at the Office of the Secretary-General of Nato. The debate was moderated by PhD student and Eastern Europe expert Laura Vansina.
The role of Europe
First, the experts discussed Europe’s role in this war. Mr Mingarelli argued that Europe should provide both economic and humanitarian aid. Specifically, that Europe should make €18 billion available if they want to help Ukraine survive. According to Dr Oliker, Europe’s priority for 2023 is to do everything possible to obtain lasting peace. She says this is not easy because, on the one hand, Europe has to deal with a Ukraine that does not give up and, on the other, a Russia that constantly threatens Europe. The latter deters Europe from taking concrete action. The spectre of neighbouring countries becoming involved in this war also remains.
The role of the rest of the world
As the debate progressed, questions arose about what the rest of the world can do about this war and how they view the conflict. According to Dr Oliker, many do not want to take sides. This is partly because they want to remain neutral, but also partly for economic reasons. For instance, the rest of the world does not want to be forced to turn against Russia at a time when they desperately need Russia. Dr Berti agreed with this statement and explained why the neutrality principle is so difficult in this regard. According to her, no country is truly neutral. Neutrality includes the decision not to take sides. However, this war is about humanitarian aid that other countries have to provide. In other words, the NGOs going to the warzones are people helping other people in need. This is mistaken for neutrality and therefore creates firm tensions.
The role of academia
The experts also looked at the role of academia in this war. Mr Mingarelli said the academic community plays an important role in the ideological struggle to hold Russia solely responsible. He therefore argued that there is no risk of this war playing out between the West and the East, but only the risk of Russia effectively winning.
Questions from the audience
Finally, at the end of the debate, there was room for the audience to ask questions. These included the question of what will happen to those who sympathise with the new regime in the eastern part of Ukraine currently occupied by Russia. What will happen to them if Ukraine wins the war? To this, the experts replied that some of them will be accused of collaboration. It is therefore important for Europe to promote reconciliation and assist Ukrainians in this delicate process.
A final interesting question concerned the role that journalism plays in an ideological war. Can European countries – which have the greatest media freedom – help Russian activists? What can Europe do to help Russian journalists? The experts replied that Europe should fund journalists and assist them as much as possible. This is a task that many NGOs are already taking on, but even greater European efforts are clearly needed.
