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Public talk “Unfinished History: Crimea, War, and Ukraine’s Future”

Details

Published on Tuesday, 25 February 2025 12:28

Time: February 28, 16:00

Place: Kyiv-Mohyla Business School (KMBS)

Building 7, Voloska St. 9-12 (Big Space)

The meeting will take place in English. This is an in-person event.

Please fill out the form to participate

At the end of February, we traditionally talk about Crimea and the war. Eleven years ago, in 2014, the Russian Federation launched the annexation of the peninsula. Eight years later, once again in February, Crimea became one of the staging grounds for Russia’s full-scale invasion.

We say, “The war began in Crimea, and it will end in Crimea,” because it was there, in 2014, that the occupier’s neocolonial ambitions first revealed themselves. This is why the topics of Crimea, the war, and Ukraine’s future are deeply intertwined and inseparable.

Eleven years – is that a long time? What challenges have we managed to overcome, and which ones still lack a clear solution? Ultimately, what lies ahead, and how can we prepare for it?

Join us on February 28 for a panel talk with our speakers as we explore these critical questions.

David Rieff is a New York-based journalist and author. During the nineteen-nineties, he covered conflicts in Africa (Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Liberia), the Balkans (Bosnia and Kosovo), and Central Asia. Rieff has written extensively about Iraq, and, more recently, about Latin America. He is the author of eight books, including Slaughterhouse: Bosnia and the Failure of the West and A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis. Rieff’s latest book In Praise of Forgetting: the Irony of Historical Memory was published in April 2016 by Yale University Press.

Lily Hyde is a British writer, journalist and editor specializing in Eastern Europe, Ukraine, and particularly Crimea. She lives in Kyiv and has written for The Guardian, The Times, Foreign Policy and Politico. She has written extensively on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Her book Dream Land is a masterful and empathetic portrayal of the Crimean Tatars’ return to their homeland from exile.

Ēzra Pastor is a Karaim activist, artist, fashion designer, and promoter of Karaim history. He shares insights on Ukrainian (often Crimean) culture through his blog, blending stories of remarkable figures with design. He frequently highlights his Karaim heritage and its significance in today’s context, striving to raise awareness about the Karaim people.

Suleiman Mamutov is a human rights expert with a decade of experience in international humanitarian, development, and advocacy work with Ukrainian and global organizations. He co-authored key legislation on IDPs, mine action, and Indigenous Peoples’ rights in Ukraine. Elected as an expert member of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in 2022, he became its Rapporteur in 2024. Currently, he collaborates with Amnesty International Ukraine and the OSCE to advance Indigenous rights and promote international justice.

Moderator: Martin-Oleksandr Kisly, PhD, Head of Crimean Studies Center of Kyiv-Mohyla academy.