Future of Ukraine: U-M’s Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia to host special panel

The University of Michigan's Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia, in partnership with the Atlantic Council, will host a panel discussion at 5 p.m. Dec. 3 in Room 1010, Weiser Hall, on how the United States and Europe can best support Ukraine's recovery and long-term stability after the war.

Panelists will present strategic recommendations prepared by a U-M-led working group of 20 international experts for the incoming U.S. administration.

The discussion will be moderated by WCEE Director Geneviève Zubrzycki, the Weiser Family Professor in European and Eurasian Studies, and Daniel Fried, the Weiser Family Distinguished Fellow at the Atlantic Council and former U.S. Ambassador to Poland, with remarks by John E. Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center and former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

The panel will feature:

• Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine's Minister of Foreign Affairs from March 2020 to September 2024, who will provide insights from his experience in Ukraine's government during this critical period.
• Assia Ivantcheva of the National Endowment for Democracy, who will discuss the role of democratic resilience and civil society rebuilding in Ukraine.
• Stephen Biegun, representing U-M's Weiser Diplomacy Center, former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and strategist on U.S. foreign policy.
• Minna Ålander of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, who will share perspectives on the broader regional security implications and European responses.

"The U-M Special Panel on the Future of Ukraine represents a culmination of the work of the world's leading foreign policy experts," Zubrzycki said. "We are eager to present their findings to the public and are uniquely positioned to support the incoming administration in creating a just and viable framework for the future of Ukraine."

The event is free and open to the public, with the opportunity for audience Q&A following the panel discussion. More information: Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia