Maxwell School News

“It’s the humanitarian crisis that almost no one wants to talk about despite several global powers exacerbating the civil war and trying to use Sudan for their own advantages,” says Nayyera Haq, assistant dean for Maxwell's Washington programs.

William Banks, professor emeritus of public administration and international affairs, says federally deployed National Guard don’t have the same authority as troops deployed by a state—for example, the troops in LA are officially charged with protecting federal personnel and property, but can’t enforce the law themselves or make arrests. It’s a rarely-used executive authority because it’s not typically within their role or training, he says.natio

Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs, says that from a tactical military standpoint, they were very effective attacks that had dealt a significant blow to Moscow's military machine.

“The director [of the new aid group] has already resigned and there's an interim director in place. And the director who resigned said it was because the attempts to deliver aid could not be done so with a humanitarian purpose, and that shouldn't be surprising. The United Nations is the only major organization on the ground, as well as several other NGOs, that can provide the necessary aid,” says Osamah Khalil, chair of the International Relations Undergraduate Program.

“Putin isn’t interested in a ceasefire or an agreement, but rather in victory, understood as the subjugation of Ukraine,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science. “The Russian president has faced zero consequences for stalling Trump over the past four months, and from what Trump has said about the conversation, that hasn’t changed one bit.”

“In a region where democratic backsliding has often been normalized, Bangladesh is attempting a rare and ambitious path forward. But reforms – no matter how visionary – face real resistance from entrenched interests and are fraught with obstacles, both internal and external, that threaten to derail Bangladesh’s progress,” writes Farhana Sultana, professor of geography and the environment.

“I don't think either the Indian or Pakistani governments actually want a war,” says Mona Bhan, Ford-Maxwell Professor of South Asian Studies. “But neither of them wants to appear weak under any circumstances.”

“There have been a variety of efforts since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 to try and remake the U.S.-Russia relationship...Obviously a lot has happened since then and it hasn't worked out that way and from my point of view, the thing that has broken the relationship most of all has been the Russian war against Ukraine which began in 2014,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science.

“Trump’s contention that Ukraine’s hope of joining NATO ‘caused the war to start’ is a claim that is often made, but one that doesn’t stand up to scrutiny,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science. “Given that there was no serious prospect of Ukraine joining NATO between 2008 and 2022, it’s hard to see how Ukraine’s hope of joining NATO at some point in the future caused the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022.”

“Now the Trump administration is claiming this is an attempt to pressure Iran but it's unclear to me, quite frankly, by bombing a port, killing paramedics and port workers, is somehow going to pressure Iran in negotiations,” says Osamah Khalil, professor of history. “If the United States wants to neotiate with Iran, it should negotiate with Iran. There's no reason to be bombing Yemen to do that.”

“Africa’s newest state has remained trapped in a cycle of civil unrest and perpetual peace agreements that have not translated into real peace for its citizens. As it stands, all indications are that the fragile peace is in danger, as President Salva Kiir has ordered the house arrest of his rival, Vice President Riek Machar,” says Jok Madut Jok, professor of anthropology.

“If you look at what the Kremlin put out, based upon the phone call between presidents Trump and Putin, their characterization of it was much more sober and it was clear that Putin reiterated his constant talking points about the need to get to what he calls the ‘root causes’ of the conflict,” says Brian Taylor, director of the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs.

February marked the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a critical moment of instability and uncertainty for many scholars forced to seek new homes and academic communities abroad. Tetiana Hranchak, visiting assistant teaching professor in the Moynihan Institute, reflects on the impact of the war on her academic work and activism.

“The way the U.S. is going about it is not inclined to make a ceasefire take place and last. All the pressure at the moment seems to be on the Ukrainians to show that they're willing to settle and that they want peace. But the country that started the war is Russia and its Russia that's on the attack,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science.

“The talks in United Kingdom…represent a pivotal inflection point for the alliance of nations that support Ukraine, and for the prospects for a ceasefire in the months ahead,” says Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs.

Three Ukrainian experts, Maria Avdeeva, Eurasia fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute; Tetiana Hranchak, visiting assistant teaching professor in the Moynihan Institute; and Mariana Semenyshyn, visiting Fulbright scholar in the Moynihan Institute, shared their views on the course of the war. 

“The same terms that were agreed to by Hamas and Israel were available at least eight months ago and likely a similar deal could have been achieved late last year...Instead, the Biden administration’s vociferous support for Israel’s 15-month military campaign has had a profound impact on America’s standing in the world,” says Osamah Khalil, professor of history.

“Ukraine joining NATO will mean the readiness of the western countries to defend their own sovereignty and remain subjects of international relations, and such determination in itself is a deterrent," says Tetiana Hranchak, visiting assistant teaching professor in the Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs.

“What really needs to happen here is for the Biden administration to work with and ensure—with its European allies, with its Arab allies—Syria's territorial integrity, ensure transition to a democratic government, and ensure that all Syrians will be protected,” says Osamah Khalil, professor of history. 

“The Roosevelt administration had attempted to reign in the Japanese, particularly by the use of economic boycotts. In mid-1941, especially, the Roosevelt administration had boycotted all sales of gasoline and aviation fuel to the Japanese. Now the idea was that this would be a detterent to the Japanese. It would persuade them to withdraw from China. But ironically, it ended up having the opposite effect,” says Alan Allport, professor of history.