Quinnipiac University Conference on Feb. 25

Ambassadors from Romania, Hungary and Poland to speak at Quinnipiac University conference on Feb. 25 to mark first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

HAMDEN - Ambassadors from Romania, Hungary and Poland will be among the featured speakers at the conference, “Passing the One-Year Mark: How the Ukrainian Displacement Crisis Shapes European and American Policy,” which will take place Saturday, Feb. 25, from 1-5 p.m. in the Mount Carmel Auditorium at Quinnipiac University, 275 Mount Carmel Ave.

The conference, hosted by the Central European Institute at Quinnipiac, is being held to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The program will feature panelists who will discuss the latest news from the war’s frontlines, refugee displacement both within Ukraine and neighboring countries, the economic cost of the refugee crisis and what Connecticut is doing to help.

“On this one-year anniversary we felt its important to look at the broader effects of the war,” said Chris Ball, associate professor of economics and director of the Central European Institute. “In addition to being devastating for Ukraine and its people, it’s also displaced them and driven the largest migration flows in Europe since the world wars. The military implications are in the news daily, but wars impact people and countries and politics. We’re bringing world leaders together to understand the broader implications of the war for the neighboring nations and for the United States too.”

Quinnipiac President Judy Olian will welcome the audience and introduce U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal who will deliver the opening remarks.

During the conference’s first session “Challenges in Ukraine and Europe,” Kristóf György Veres, senior researcher at the Migration Research Institute in Hungary, and Mónika Palotai, visiting researcher at the Hudson Institute, will provide an update from their visit to Ukraine last month and discuss displacement inside Ukraine.

Jacek Czaputowicz, former foreign minister of Poland, will discuss the challenge for regional stability and, Sviatoslav Hnizdovsky, CEO of the Open Mind Institute, will discuss Russian society psychology and countering Russian narratives about migration.

Czaputowicz will moderate the panel on the “European Union and Frontline Countries’ Responses to the War.” Cornel Feruta, Romanian ambassador to the United Nations. Zsuzsanna Horváth, Hungarian ambassador to the U.N., and Adrian Kubicki, consul general of the Republic of Poland, will discuss their countries’ responses to the war.

Ball will moderate the final panel on “Global and American Challenges.” He will be joined by Palotai, who will discuss the economics of the refugee crisis, Nayla Rush, senior researcher at the Center for Immigration Studies, who will discuss the U.S. response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis; and immigration attorney Dana Bucin of Murtha-Cullina LLC and honorary Romanian consul to Connecticut, will discuss Connecticut and Ukrainian refugees.

Several Connecticut veterans, including representatives of the Connecticut Ukrainian-American Veterans Association, are expected to attend.

For more information, call 203-582-8652.