“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.”

“Social media can be a minefield for divisive commentary, so I imagine he’ll use it sparingly, perhaps for simple, pastoral messages (and yes, delivered on the official pope account) like holiday greetings, but not for anything controversial,” says Margaret Susan Thompson, professor of history and political science.

India's move to use the Indus Waters Treaty as geopolitical leverage “undermines the legal integrity of such treaties,” says Farhana Sultana, professor of geography and the environment. ”These treaty violations and suspensions can have ripple-on deleterious (harmful) effects across and beyond the region for the examples they set,” she says.

“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.

“We see that with Pope Francis when he talked about the environment and taking care of the planet. That's had a pretty profound influence, although he didn't tell people who to vote for or particular agenda items that nations ought to adopt,” says Margaret Susan Thompson, associate professor of history and 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.”

“Resettled Refugee Parent and Young Adult Perspectives on Mental Health After the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic,” co-authored by Distinguished Professor of Anthropology Robert Rubinstein, was published in Discover Mental Health.

“Addressing the Triple Trauma of Factors Leading to Perinatal Health and Mental Health Consequences in Two Upstate New York Communities,” co-authored by Maxwell anthropologists Robert Rubinstein and Sandra Lane, along with Ph.D. student Kiara Van Brackle, was published in Behavioral Sciences.

The One University Awards Ceremony, an annual event to honor members of the Syracuse University community who are making a difference through academics, scholarship, creative work and dedicated service, will be held Friday, April 11, from 1 to 2:30 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel.

“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.

“I think there are plenty of people in Greenland who would like to have good and close ties with the United States. But that doesn’t mean they want to be part of the United States. They want independence,” says Renée de Nevers, associate professor of public administration and international affairs. 

“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.

The development of the U.S. as a fossil fuel superpower is a “brazen disregard” for climate action, says Matt Huber, professor of geography and the environment.

“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 consequences of pushing the Mexican economy into a forced and deep recession is that, if anything, it will actually make people have to resort to informal economic activity, which oftentimes is illicit,” says Gladys McCormick, Jay and Debe Moskowitz Endowed Chair in Mexico-U.S. Relations.

“One thing I would call attention to is that President Trump and Russian President Putin had an hour and a half long conversation last week. And since that conversation Trump has repeated multiple Putin talking points about the war,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science.

Mark Brockway, assistant teaching professor of political science, has co-authored “The Shadow Gospel: How Anti-liberal Demonology Possessed U.S. Religion, Media, and Politics” (The MIT Press, 2025). The book explores the American right, evangelical rhetoric and attacks on liberalism over the last eight decades.

“Syracuse University professor Brian Taylor, author of ‘Russian Politics: A Very Short Introduction,’ packs a wealth of analysis and interesting facts into a compact book,” writes Stuart Anderson, senior contributor at Forbes.

“Patchy Internalization: Transnational Migration and Local Buildings in the Bosnian Borderland,” authored by Associate Professor of Anthropology Azra Hromadžić, was published in Society.

“Bankrolling the Belgrade Bandits? Civil Society, NGOs, and Foreign Aid Localization in Serbia,” authored by Catherine Herrold, associate professor of public administration and international affairs, was published in Public Administration and Development.