PONARS Eurasia Spring Policy Conference 2023

The PONARS Eurasia Spring Policy Conference convenes international experts from North America, Russia, Ukraine, and other parts of Eurasia for a series of panel discussions. This hybrid event offers an opportunity to hear from experts on important geopolitical trends in the region, including responses to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Schedule:

9:00 am   Opening Remarks: David Szakonyi, The George Washington University

9:00 am-10:30 am   Panel 1: Ukrainian Society and Politics in Wartime
Location: Elliott School, Lindner Commons, Room 602

Chair: Henry Hale, The George Washington University

Tymofii Brik (online), Kyiv School of Economics
“Decentralization and Trust in Government: Quasi-experimental Evidence from Ukraine”

Oleksandr Fisun, Kharkiv National University
“How the Russian Invasion Changed Ukraine’s Political Landscape”

Ivan Gomza (online), Kyiv School of Economics
“Political and Societal Medium-Term War Outcomes: Historical Perspectives and Tentative Projection for the Russo-Ukrainian War”

Tetyana Malyarenko (online) and Borys Kormych (online), National University of Odesa Law Academy
“Russian Policy Towards the Economy of Occupied Ukrainian Territories: Crawling De-Modernization”

10:30-10:45 am   Coffee Break

10:45 am-12:30 pm   Panel 2: Authoritarianism and Democracy Promotion
Location: Lindner Commons, Room 602

Chair: Mikhail Troitskiy, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Hannah Chapman, University of Oklahoma
“All Fraud is Not Created Equal: Recent Electoral Manipulation Practices Are Less Likely to Incite Public Ire”

Emil Dzhuraev (online), Soros Foundation-Kyrgyzstan
“Il Nuovo Principe: How Sadyr Japarov turned democracy on itself and ruled bravely thereafter”

Cole Harvey, Oklahoma State University
“The Risk of Protest Won’t Stop Election Manipulation: Implications for Democracy Assistance”

Valerie Sperling, Clark University and Laura Henry, Bowdoin College (co-authored with Lisa Sundstrom)
“Exodus: Russian Repression and Social ‘Movement’”

Margarita Zavadskaya (online), University of Helsinki, Finland
“Civic Activism among Russian Migrants after February 24: Evidence from Panel Survey Data”

12:30-1:30 pm   Lunch

1:30 pm-3:00 pm   Panel 3:  Russian War Practice and Consequences
Location: Lindner Commons, Room 602

Chair: Timothy Frye, Columbia University

Kristina Hook, Kennesaw State University
“The Policy Implications of Russia’s Genocide in Ukraine”

Marat Iliyasov, Miami University of Ohio
“The Chechen Factor in the War on Ukraine”

Jean-Francois Ratelle, University of Ottawa
“Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya, and the War in Ukraine”

Andrei Semenov (online), Center for Comparative History and Politics, Perm
“Getting Messages Across: War Propaganda in Russian Press and Social Media”

Discussant: Miriam Lanskoy, National Endowment for Democracy

3:00-3:15 pm   Coffee Break

3:15 pm-5:00 pm   Panel 4: Russian Ideology and Values on the Offensive
Location: Lindner Commons, Room 602

Chair: Marlene Laruelle, The George Washington University

Antonina Berezovenko, The George Washington University
“Putin: The Cult of Personality”

Ivan Fomin, Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA)
“Putin’s Ideology of ‘Traditional Values’ in Action”

Ivan Grek, The George Washington University
“The Grassroots of Putin’s Ideology: Civil Origins of an Uncivil Regime”

Azamat Junisbai, Pitzer College
“Making Sense of Russian Support for War Against Ukraine: A Central Asian Perspective”

Katie Stewart, Knox College
“Consolidating Values to Consolidate Power in Russia”

Discussant: Eva Busza, National Democratic Institute