Eurasia Center Director John Herbst joined Ambassadors Steven Pifer and William Taylor, all former US ambassadors to Ukraine, to write an op-ed for NPR that outlines how the coronavirus crisis may be an opportunity to end the war in Ukraine.
With the global pandemic ravaging world ravaging global economies, sanctions placed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and seizure of Crimea are having a particularly acute effect. As Herbst, Pifer, and Taylor argue, this may be an opportunity to leverage a Russian withdrawal from occupied territory in order to have sanctions removed, freeing up resources for the Kremlin to respond to the virus at home.
While years of diplomacy to end the Ukraine war have stalled, a high-level push now from the United States could break that deadlock. The coronavirus crisis could provide the Kremlin a rationale to agree.
issue spotlight
Europe in crisis
War in Ukraine
In February 2022, Moscow launched an all-out invasion of Ukraine after a months-long military build-up, threatening the country’s sovereignty and its future. This existential moment for the country follows the 2014 Maidan revolution, a nexus for Ukraine’s Europe-focused foreign policy and reform efforts. The ensuing Russian invasion and occupation of Crimea, aggression in Ukraine’s east, and Kremlin disinformation efforts, cast a shadow over Ukraine’s independence.
More about our expert
The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting policies that strengthen stability, democratic values, and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe in the West to the Caucasus, Russia, and Central Asia in the East.