A History of Ukraine: Past and Present
17 September 2022, 12.00pm
£12.00
A History of Ukraine: Past and Present
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The event
Threatened by Moscow and long misunderstood in the West, Ukraine has become the focus of international attention since it was invaded by Russia in February 2022.
In this timely event, journalist and author Anna Reid will draw on her longstanding knowledge of Ukraine to shed light on the history of a country that was once the centre of the first great Slav civilisation in the 10th century.
Divided between warring neighbours for a millennium, Ukraine finally won independence with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Tiring of their own corrupt governments, Ukrainians have since mounted two popular revolutions, taking to the streets to demand fair elections and closer ties to Europe.
Since 2014, Russia has encroached on the country’s territory, invading Crimea and sponsoring a civil war in the Russian-speaking Donbass. Now, in the midst of war, it is more important than ever to understand the history of this complex borderland.
The speaker
Anna Reid is an author and journalist. She was Kyiv correspondent for The Economist and The Daily Telegraph in the 1990s and is currently preparing a fourth edition of her 1997 book Borderland: A Journey Through the History of Ukraine, following research trips in February and April of this year. She has written about aspects of Russia’s current war against Ukraine for The Economist and the Guardian, and for the US Council on Foreign Relations’ Foreign Affairs.
Her other books are The Shaman’s Coat: A Native History of Siberia, and Leningrad: Tragedy of a City Under Siege, 1941-44, which was shortlisted for the Duff Cooper Prize and has been published in 17 languages. She is also a trustee of the Ukrainian Institute London.
