Russia’s Objectives in the Ukraine War
Date
Friday March 21, 202512:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Location
Robert Sutherland Hall Room 202The Department of Political Studies Corry Colloquium Speaker Series presents:
Peter Rutland - Wesleyan University
"Russia’s Objectives in the Ukraine War"
Friday, March 21, 2025
12:00-1:30 PM
Robert Sutherland Hall | Room 202
Light lunch served
About the talk:
There is sharp polarization amongst Western analysts about Putin’s objectives in the Ukraine war. Some argue the Russian invasion was a response to a perceived threat to Russian security from the West, which means that if the West acts to lessen that threat, the war can be brought to an end. Others argue that the war is driven by forces structurally embedded in the Russian state and society – and can only be contained by force. Can these two positions be reconciled? Where does the truth lie?
Biography:
Peter Rutland is a professor of government at Wesleyan University where he has taught since 1989. He is associate editor of Russian Review and former editor in chief of Nationalities Papers. He works on the political economy of the post-Soviet space and the dynamics of national identity in that region. Recent articles include Ukraine: the forever war? Voices of Peace and War (2023) and Thirty years of nation-building in the post-Soviet states Nationalities Papers (2023).