Ukraine fights Russia's military – and its imperial aims

Special newsletter: Ukraine war at 6 months US Edition - Today's top story: Ukrainian people are resisting the centuries-old force of Russian imperialism – Ukraine war at 6 months [View in browser]( US Edition | 23 August 2022 [The Conversation]( The war in Ukraine has hit the six-month mark, and its devastating effects have been felt both inside Ukraine and far beyond its borders. Thousands have been killed; millions have fled their homes and sought refuge in other countries. The conflict’s economic shockwaves continue to pound Europe and the rest of the world. All this, writes historian Ronald Suny, because of Russia’s hunger for domination and prestige. “Ukraine faces an implacable foe whose current sense of self is embedded [in its imperial past and its distinction from the West](,” Suny writes. A historian at the University of Michigan, Suny says that Ukraine’s heroic resistance to Russian aggression has, perhaps, presented Russia with a foe that it cannot roll over. “Even empires have their limits, and when faced with determined opposition, they learn the harsh lesson of imperial overreach,” he writes. If Suny’s story covers the grand sweep of history in order to help readers understand the war, University of Michigan anthropologist Greta Uehling brings an intimate view to her article about personal ethics and relationships during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, a subject she started studying when Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimea in 2014. Ukrainians, she writes, “struggled to prioritize competing obligations under the most challenging conditions. Couples told me they had to balance the competing demands placed on them by their political convictions with responsibility for aging parents and children, along with the bonds they shared with each other.” Uehling cites a woman who “sent her children to live with their grandparents so she could run a shelter that she and her husband had established on the frontlines.” This kind of choice – between rival obligations that pull powerfully on people’s hearts – illustrates [the emotional conflicts of this war as Ukrainians found themselves](, in Uehling’s beautifully evocative phrase, “entangled in a conflict that had no sidelines.” Not all the news is grim from Ukraine. Communications scholar Nadia Kaneva writes that Ukraine “is the first country to launch an official nation branding campaign in the midst of war. For the first time, brand communication [is a key part of a country’s response to a military invasion](.” You may have encountered that campaign, captured in its tagline “Bravery. To be Ukraine,” in the form of a Vogue magazine profile of Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska, replete with photos by celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz of Zelenska in fashionable clothes sitting on the steps of Ukraine’s parliament building. The very fact that you may know about the Zelenska profile shows the campaign is working. Kaneva writes that the campaign “fits into a larger communication strategy, mounted by Ukraine’s government, that’s intended to keep the world focused on the country’s fight against Russian aggression.” Six months in, The Conversation remains committed to focusing on this war. Naomi Schalit Senior Editor, Politics + Society People attend an exhibition of Russian equipment destroyed by the armed forces of Ukraine, in Lviv, Ukraine, Aug. 11, 2022. Olena Znak/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images [Ukrainian people are resisting the centuries-old force of Russian imperialism – Ukraine war at 6 months]( Ronald Suny, University of Michigan Democratic nation-states were supposed to be the legitimate successors of empires. It hasn’t quite worked out that way in the past century, and Russia’s war on Ukraine is a reflection of that. Zhanna Dynaeva and Serhiy Dynaev stand with a cat inside their house, which was destroyed by Russian bombardment, in the village of Novoselivka, Ukraine, Aug. 13, 2022. AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka [Ukraine’s war has shattered some friendships and family ties – but ‘care ethics’ have strengthened other relationships]( Greta Uehling, University of Michigan An anthropologist explains how years of conflict have made Ukrainians reassess their priorities and relationships. A woman walks by large signs that read ‘Bravery is Ukrainian brand’ in Kyiv. Oleksii Chumachenko/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images [With ‘bravery’ as its new brand, Ukraine is turning advertising into a weapon of war]( Nadia Kaneva, University of Denver Ukraine is partnering with an advertising company to produce an innovative nation branding campaign during a war. The campaign could have influence beyond how Ukraine and Russia conduct this war. - [Starving civilians is an ancient military tactic, but today it’s a war crime in Ukraine, Yemen, Tigray and elsewhere]( Tom Dannenbaum, Tufts University; Alex De Waal, Tufts University; Daniel Maxwell, Tufts University Countries have used starvation as a war strategy for centuries, historically without being prosecuted. Three experts on hunger and humanitarian relief call for holding perpetrators accountable. - [Proving war crimes isn’t simple – a forensics expert explains what’s involved with documenting human rights violations during conflicts, from Afghanistan to Ukraine]( Stefan Schmitt, Florida International University Other recent conflicts that resulted in war crimes allegations help explain how complex it will be to gather evidence of war crimes in Ukraine – and provide answers for families of victims of the war. - [Poland’s warm welcome to about 2 million Ukrainian refugees draws global praise, but it might not be sustainable]( Patrice McMahon, University of Nebraska-Lincoln A scholar of humanitarianism sums up what she saw on the ground during a five-week research trip to Poznań, Lublin, Warsaw, Krakow and several smaller cities along the Poland-Ukraine border. - [Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens a cultural heritage the two countries share, including Saint Sophia Cathedral]( J. Eugene Clay, Arizona State University Saint Sophia Cathedral was built under the reign of Grand Prince Yaroslav, whose father, Volodymyr, converted the region to Christianity. - [Kremlin tightens control over Russians’ online lives – threatening domestic freedoms and the global internet]( Stanislav Budnitsky, Indiana University For more than a decade, the Russian government has been putting teeth into its doctrine of ‘digital sovereignty’ by steadily increasing censorship of content and control over internet access. - [Russia’s mass kidnappings of Ukrainians are a page out of a wartime playbook – and evidence of genocide]( Alexander Hinton, Rutgers University - Newark Russia and other countries and political regimes have a long history of forcing people to move, mostly for security and economic gains. - [Social media provides flood of images of death and carnage from Ukraine war – and contributes to weaker journalism standards]( Beena Sarwar, Emerson College Many images from the Ukraine war are compelling and distressing depictions of the human costs of war. - - About The Conversation: We're a nonprofit news organization dedicated to [helping academic experts share ideas with the public](. 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