Category: Human Rights

Peace is impossible until Ukraine is safe from future Russian aggression

A series of news items in recent weeks have reignited the simmering debate over a possible peace deal to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine. While none of these developments provided a plausible roadmap toward a sustainable settlement, they did help highlight some of the key obstacles preventing a return to the negotiating table. The

Ukraine’s Oscar win puts Russia’s war crimes back in international spotlight

Ukrainian wartime documentary “20 Days in Mariupol” won the country’s first ever Oscar at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles on March 10. For most Ukrainians, however, this was a bittersweet moment. Two years on from the harrowing events captured in Ukrainian director Mstyslav Chernov’s film, their country is still fighting for national survival against

Vladimir Putin is losing Russia’s long war against Ukrainian identity

When Russian soldiers occupied Borodyanka in February 2022, one of their first acts was to shoot the town’s monument to Ukrainian national bard Taras Shevchenko in the head. This symbolic display of hostility toward Ukrainian identity captured the essence of the war unleashed by Vladimir Putin. Today’s invasion is the latest chapter in a far

No opposition candidates allowed in Belarus dictator’s “sham” elections

Sunday’s parliamentary and local elections in Belarus were among the most flawed in the thirty-year reign of the country’s authoritarian ruler, Alyaksandr Lukashenka. The ballot was completely cleansed of all opposition, with only loyalist candidates permitted to participate. The election was the first to take place in Belarus since the controversial presidential ballot of August

Putin’s unpunished Crimean crime set the stage for Russia’s 2022 invasion

On February 24, the world will reflect on the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. While attention is understandably focused on the current phase of Russia’s war, this week also marked ten years since the Kremlin first began its attack on Ukraine with the military takeover of Crimea. One decade on, it should