The Russian Invasion of Ukraine: Understanding the Deeper Causes - Mary Winspear

Course description

This lecture will reveal the deeper reasons behind Russian aggression beyond the often-cited but misleading security concerns. It will focus on the diametrically opposite political trajectories of post-Soviet Ukraine and Russia, in particular on the development of civil society and the process of coming to terms with the Stalinist past. The lecture will also discuss the two countries’ images of each other, and connect Russia’s military setbacks to the Putin administration’s belief in its own propaganda. We will also analyze the reasons behind the Ukrainians’ resilience and the war’s implications for the world.