What’s wrong with Ukraine’s wartime diplomacy in the Global South
In the month of the 1st anniversary of Russia’s illegal and brutal full-scale invasion of Ukraine, president Volodymyr Zelensky held a speech at the European Parliament, where he declared Russia to be “the biggest anti-European force of the modern world”[1]. By “European”, he meant its ostensibly “way of life steeped in rules, values, equality, and […]
Decentralization or Decapitation? Decentralization reform during the War in Donbas
Ukraine’s decentralization reform has been claimed as one of the country’s most successful since the 2013-2014 Maidan Revolution. Recently, an article in Foreign Affairs argued that Ukraine’s decentralization has ‘brought the country together’ in the face of Russia’s 2022 invasion, fostering political legitimacy, solidarity, and community pride. I offer a different perspective in my research […]
To get a ramp, you have to tear with your teeth. Reintegration of Ukrainian soldiers after injury
“Perfect society is when there is respect for one another, no matter whether I have an injury or not, whether I served or not. You should help if you see that someone has it hard, or just come and help anyone, no matter if the person has a prosthesis or not,” – Andriy. In […]
March 8 in the second year of war: experiences and visions of Ukrainian feminists
In the middle of February, a draft law was uploaded on the Parliament website, calling to cancel the celebrations of March 8, introducing instead the Day of a Ukrainian woman. Referencing economic losses from March 8 being a national holiday and the need “to part with Soviet legacy”, politicians gracefully ignore the political significance of […]
Experiences that should have never happened again: how Ukrainians survive the war
Russia’s invasion has made murder, rape and torture a part of our everyday life. It never ceases to terrify, anger and remind us that we cannot stop fighting. Indeed, those defending us from the invader, those who have lost their loved ones or survived rape and torture, struggle the most. The existence of this suffering, […]
Weapons of war: sexual violence of Russian military during the full-scale invasion in Ukraine
War-time sexual violence exists for as long as wars themselves. Memory about mass sexual crimes during World War 2 still lives, for example, those committed by Wehrmacht and its allies on the occupied territories, by the Imperial Japanese Army (the phenomena of the so-called “comfort women”), by the Red Army in Hungary and Germany, etc. […]
European integration for healthcare: between European recommendations and Ukrainian realities
European integration is closely intertwined in both the discourse of politicians and the expectations of citizens about Ukraine's future. Despite the war, or perhaps because of it, there has been progress in the European integration process – in June 2022 Ukraine was granted candidate status for EU membership. But the requirements remain the same as […]
From ‘Bothsidesism’ to Solidarity with Ukraine: The Japanese Left Responds to the Russo-Ukrainian War
In May last year 28 German intellectuals published an open letter in the feminist journal Emma calling on Chancellor Gerhard Scholz to refrain from sending heavy weapons to Ukraine, and to help negotiate a ceasefire in the Russo-Ukrainian war. The letter expressed anti-war convictions dear to older German progressives, invoking Germany’s “historic responsibility” to […]
No, privatisation should not be restarted after the war
On 9th November 2022 “Ekonomichna Pravda” organised a discussion with the deputy executive director of the IMF in Ukraine Vladislav Rashkovan and CEO Andrii Boitsun about the role of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the post-war revival of Ukraine. This “role” turned out to be the liquidation of most SOEs. The main theses published […]
“The ruins have taught me something about myself”. Mariupol Memory Park as an autonomous anarchive
Mariupol Memory Park is a project of the Freefilmers collective, one of the many artistic and research communities of Mariupol that united people who lived and worked in the city. The project functions as a website that absorbs the reflections and creative output of Mariupol residents, their accounts of the struggle to assert the […]
