On April 21, Ukrainians went to the polls and in a landslide vote, elected as their president Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky is a 41-year-old comedian and political novice that stars in a TV series playing a high school teacher who becomes president when his rant against corrupt politicians goes viral. Political analysts see this as a protest vote against rampant corruption, economic hardship and a seemingly never-ending war in eastern Ukraine fomented and supported by Russia. This war has killed 13,000 and internally displaced close to 2 million people leaving Ukrainians deeply frustrated and ready for a change.
What are the prospects for Ukraine moving forward? How will Zelensky live up to the expectations of those who elected him? Will Ukraine continue to integrate into Europe or slide back into Russia’s orbit? How were the last five years in Ukraine affected by the 2014 revolution and how has the country's identity changed?
Join us for a conversation with Professor Yaroslav Hrytsak, a historian and one of Ukraine's leading public intellectuals, to discuss these questions and Ukraine's future. Yaroslav Hrytsak is Professor of Modern and Contemporary History of Ukraine at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, where he is also a Director of the Jewish Studies Program.
On April 21, Ukrainians went to the polls and in a landslide vote, elected as their president Volodymyr Zelensky. Zelensky is a 41-year-old comedian and political novice that stars in a TV series playing a high school teacher who becomes president when his rant against corrupt politicians goes viral. Political analysts see this as a protest vote against rampant corruption, economic hardship and a seemingly never-ending war in eastern Ukraine fomented and supported by Russia. This war has killed 13,000 and internally displaced close to 2 million people leaving Ukrainians deeply frustrated and ready for a change.
What are the prospects for Ukraine moving forward? How will Zelensky live up to the expectations of those who elected him? Will Ukraine continue to integrate into Europe or slide back into Russia’s orbit? How were the last five years in Ukraine affected by the 2014 revolution and how has the country's identity changed?
Join us for a conversation with Professor Yaroslav Hrytsak, a historian and one of Ukraine's leading public intellectuals, to discuss these questions and Ukraine's future. Yaroslav Hrytsak is Professor of Modern and Contemporary History of Ukraine at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, where he is also a Director of the Jewish Studies Program.
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