Hauptinhalt

Reflecting on Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Weapons Threats in the ongoing Russian Full-Scale Invasion of Ukraine

Presentation by Prof Dr Philipp Bleek (Monterey, USA), followed by a roundtable discussion with Prof Dr Thorsten Bonacker (Marburg, DE) and Prof Dr Andrea Gawrich (Giessen, DE)

Veranstaltungsdaten

Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine has taken place in the shadow of nuclear, biological, chemical and radiological threats. How have nuclear weapons and both the weapons and non-weapons dimensions of biological, chemical and radiological threats affected the conflict so far? How might they affect its future course? And what have we learned about the effects, including the limits, of these military capabilities? Philipp Bleek will first examine the issue from a security policy perspective. In the ensuing discussion, Andrea Gawrich (Giessen) will comment from a regional studies perspective and Thorsten Bonacker (Marburg) will provide insights from a peace and conflict research perspective.

Dr Philipp C. Bleek is Professor in the Master’s Programme in Nonproliferation and Terrorism Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California. He previously served as Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Defense Programs in the administration of US President Barack Obama. His work focuses on the causes, consequences, and mitigation of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear weapons threats from both state and non-state actors at the intersection of academia, non-governmental organisations, and government.

Dr Thorsten Bonacker is Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Marburg. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the German Foundation for Peace Research and a member of the Advisory Boards of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (Berlin) and the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (Hamburg). His work focuses on the international administration of post-colonial and post-war societies, the role of victims in dealing with past mass violence, and atmospheres of political violence.

Dr Andrea Gawrich is Professor of Political Science/International Integration at the Justus Liebig University Giessen and Deputy Director of the University’s Research Centre for Eastern Europe (GiZO). She coordinates a Horizon Europe project on EU democracy promotion (SHAPEDEM-EU) and is PI in research projects on the politicisation of the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood Policy and on security organisations in Eastern Europe. She has published on the EU, OSCE, Council of Europe, NATO in Eastern Europe, international conflict management, democracy promotion, security and human rights policy.