GW Experts Available to Discuss Two Year Anniversary of Russia-Ukraine War

WASHINGTON (February 22, 2024) – Saturday, February 24 marks two years since Russia invaded Ukraine. Just this week, the European Union has agreed to new sanctions against Russia to target individuals and businesses suspected of assisting Moscow in its war against Ukraine. More sanctions are expected from the U.S. in response to the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in prison. As the war enters its third year, there doesn’t appear to be an end in sight. 

Faculty experts at the George Washington University are available to offer insight, commentary and analysis on the war in Ukraine. If you would like to speak with an expert, please contact GW Media Relations Specialists Shannon Mitchell at [email protected] and Cate Douglass at [email protected].

International Affairs 

Robert Orttung, a research professor of international affairs, is an expert on comparative politics, Russia, Ukraine, energy security, federalism, and democracy. He can discuss Russian politics, Russian-Ukrainian relations and all issues related to urban politics in Eurasia. He can also speak to Vladimir Putin’s legacy and governance as well as the future of Russia more broadly.

Colin Cleary, Professorial Lecturer of U.S. Foreign Policy at GW. Cleary is an expert on Ukraine-Russia dynamics, Europe Energy Security and NATO. Professor Cleary can speak on the great power conflict and national security,  NATO’s expansion–especially as it relates to Ukraine, and arms control. In addition to his expertise, Clearly has lived in work in Kyiv, Moscow, Poland, Romania, Spain and Ireland.

International Security

Alexander Downes, professor of political science and international affairs, is co-director of the Institute for Security and Conflict Studies at GW. Downes’s book Targeting Civilians in War was published by Cornell University Press in 2008 and won the Joseph Lepgold Prize awarded by Georgetown University for the best book in international relations published in that year. Downes has written on a variety of subjects in international security, including civilian victimization, foreign-imposed regime change, military effectiveness, democracy, coercion, alliances, and solutions to civil wars.

Ukraine & Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Henry Hale, professor of political science and international affairs, director of the Elliott School’s Institute for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies. He has spent extensive time conducting field research in post-Soviet Eurasia and is currently working on identity politics and political system change, with a special focus now on public opinion dynamics in Russia and Ukraine. His work has won two prizes from the American Political Science Association and includes the books The Zelensky Effect and Patronal Politics.

Russia & Vladimir Putin

Thom Shanker is the director of the Project for Media & National Security at the GW School of Media and Public Affairs. He was named director after a nearly quarter-century career with The New York Times, including 13 years as Pentagon correspondent covering the Department of Defense, overseas combat operations and national security policy. Before joining The Times, he was foreign editor of The Chicago Tribune. He spent five years as The Tribune’s Moscow correspondent, covering the start of the Gorbachev era to the death of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the communist empire in Eastern Europe.

David Szakonyi, associate professor of political science, is an expert on Russian politics. His research focuses on corruption, clientelism, and political economy in Russia, Western Europe, and the United States. His book — Politics for Profit: Business, Elections, and Policymaking in Russia examines why business people run for elected political office worldwide, how their firms perform as a result, and whether individuals with private sector experience make different policy decisions. Other research looks at the effectiveness of anti-corruption campaigns, employers mobilizing their voters to turnout during elections, and nepotism under authoritarian rule. 

Sanctions & Global Economic Impact

Scheherazade Rehman is a professor of international business and international affairs. She has advised a number of institutions including USAID, the U.S. State Department, the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. She can discuss the sanctions imposed on Russia, how the European Union is responding to the crisis and larger global risk factors.

Law

Laura A. Dickinson is the Oswald Symister Colclough Research Professor of Law and Professor of Law at The George Washington University Law School. Her work focuses on national security, human rights and the law of armed conflict. She can discuss why Russia’s invasion is a violation of international law that threatens to destabilize the post-WW II international order.

Media & War

Sean Aday is an associate professor of media and public affairs. His work focuses on the intersection of the press, politics and public opinion, especially in relation to war and foreign policy, public diplomacy and the role of digital media in democracy movements and countering violent extremism. He can discuss war reporting and the role of the media in war.

–GW–