Explaining Ukraine

Ukraine has liberated Kherson. The biggest city occupied by the Russians since Feb 24, and the only regional capital the Russians had captured. This is the 3rd major defeat of the Russian army since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Learn more from the weekly digest of our Explaining Ukraine podcast. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Ukrainian higher education is facing enormous challenges during this war. Universities have been relocated from temporarily occupied territories and territories with active fighting to more safe regions of Ukraine. Many faculty members and students have moved abroad, and are now continuing their instruction and studying online. What can and should be next? Learn more from the new episode of the “Explaining Ukraine” podcast. This episode is hosted by Tetyana Ogarkova, a Ukrainian scholar and journalist, and head of the international department at Ukraine Crisis Media Center. Tetyana's guest is Yevhen Nikolaiev, an expert of the Education Analytics think tank. This episode was recorded as part of a project of the Education Analytics think tank, supported by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. Opinions expressed in this episode are solely those of the authors' and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or beliefs of the Foundation. You can support us patreon.com/ukraineworld

Jonathan Littell is a Franco-American writer and journalist. He is the author of the bestselling novel The Kindly Ones, a story of a Nazi SS officer on the Eastern front during World War II. Littell has also reported on the wars in Chechnya, Syria, and Ukraine. Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld, spoke to Jonathan Littell in Lviv, during Lviv Book Forum, about war crimes in today’s world, fascism and putinism, and Ukrainian and Russian societies. The conversation took place two days before Russia’s massive round of missile strikes on Ukrainian cities, including Lviv, in October. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the oldest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld.

Russia's grain blackmail has failed, as Moscow showed it was incapable of blocking Ukrainian food exports. The next big battle will be over Kherson, with the Russians preparing to defend the occupied city. Ukraine is still suffering from massive blackouts. Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klychko says the city is making contingency plans to evacuate 3 mln people from Kyiv in case of a total blackout in the winter. Learn more from the weekly digest of our Explaining Ukraine podcast. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Philippe Sands is a British and French writer and lawyer. He is a Professor of Law and Director of the Centre on International Courts and Tribunals at University College London. He also wrote the bestsellers East West Street: On the Origins of Genocide and Crimes against Humanity (2016) and The Ratline: Love, Lies and Justice on the Trail of a Nazi Fugitive. His latest book is The Last Colony: A Tale of Exile, Justice and Britain's Colonial Legacy. Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld, spoke to Philippe Sands in Lviv, during the Lviv Book Forum, about the origins of concepts of genocide and crimes against humanity, the key role of Lviv in their origins, and about the future of international law. The conversation took place two days before Russia’s massive round of missile strikes on Ukrainian cities in October. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the oldest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld.

4-8 hours of blackouts per day: Ukrainians are facing rolling electricity outages after Russian missiles have hit civilian infrastructure in the previous weeks. Russia's warships are damaged in Sevastopol by drone strikes; in response, Russia withdraws from the grain agreement, which could result in a new global food crisis. Learn more from the weekly digest of our Explaining Ukraine podcast. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

Luke Harding is The Guardian’s correspondent on Ukraine, Russia, and Eastern Europe. He is the author of books "Mafia State", "Collusion", "A Very Expensive Poison", and "The Snowden Files" - books about Russia and its devastating influence on global politics. His upcoming book is called "Invasion: The Inside Story of Russia's Bloody War and Ukraine's Fight for Survival". Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld, spoke to Luke Harding about his experience of covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine, about the atrocities of the Russian army in Ukraine, and about Ukrainian political identity. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the largest Ukrainian media NGOs. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld. Luke Harding's new book "Invasion" will be available on Nov 24: https://sites.prh.com/luke-harding-invasion

Russian troops are preparing for street fighting in Kherson, as they cannot hold back the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the South. There is a risk that they will blow up the dam at the Nova Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant, provoking one of the worst environmental disasters in Eastern European history. Learn more from the weekly digest of our Explaining Ukraine podcast. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

This episode of the Explaining Ukraine podcast is made in partnership with Fiction/Non/Fiction podcast. With this podcast’s hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell we discuss the Russian invasion of Ukraine through the lens of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. We talk about how Russian literature and Russian culture have separated crime from punishment, creating a society that distrusts laws and regulation, and values power and impunity. “Explaining Ukraine” hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, and chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, who heads the international department of Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld

We went to Kharkiv region again, to learn more about the life of Ukrainians near the frontline and in liberated villages and towns. In this episode of the Explaining Ukraine podcast, we tell you the story of the mass grave in Izyum, of an 8-year-old girl killed in Bezruky, of a Ukrainian writer who went missing in Kapytolivka, his autistic son, and of how Kharkiv remains brave and strong with a vibrant cultural life despite constant shelling. Hosts: Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org, and Tetyana Ogarkova, Ukrainian scholar and journalist, in charge of international outreach at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. Support us on patreon.com/ukraineworld