Gillian Mathurin

Work together to fight Russian aggression, Estonian President Alar Karis tells students during U of T visit

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 25 Nov 2022 14:29:41 +0000

Work together to fight Russian aggression, Estonian President Alar Karis tells students during U of T visit

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 11/25/2022 - 09:29

Cutline

Estonia's President Alar Karis speaks at an event hosted by U of T's Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy on Nov. 22, 2022 (photo by Jamie Napier)

Gillian Mathurin

Topic

Global Lens

Faculty of Arts & Science

Global

History

Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy

Russia

Ukraine

Undergraduate Students

Estonian President Alar Karis warned against Russian aggression and called on the world to mobilize in support of Ukraine at a sold-out event at the ��Ƶ’s Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy this week.

“The Euro-Atlantic security architecture and our shared values face the most serious threat since the end of the Second World War,” said Karis at the Nov. 22 event. “In Europe, that threat comes from Russia, and how we respond to it will have implications for the world we live in for decades to come.

“We may have briefly believed that the world had changed and borders, at least in Europe, would not be changed by military force, that people could choose their own form of government and generally live in peace. However, as became clear on 24th February 2022, the empire next door had awakened, and begun reclaiming its sphere of influence once more.”

In his address, Karis described how Russian President Vladimir Putin’s efforts go far beyond Ukraine, aiming to destroy the Euro-Atlantic security architecture and restore dominance over the Baltic States and Poland.

Estonia’s President Alar Karis took part in a Q&A moderated by Andres Kasekamp (photo by Jamie Napier)

Karis spoke with an in-person audience of Munk School students and community members at the school’s Campbell Conference Facility. He was welcomed by Munk School Director Peter Loewen and took part in a lively Q&A moderated by Andres Kasekamp, Elmar Tampõld Chair of Estonian Studies at the Munk School and a professor in the department of history in the Faculty of Arts & Science.

It was a great honour to host President Karis here at the Munk School,” said Loewen. “His deep commitment to upholding our shared democratic values in the face of aggression is inspiring. I share his conclusion: ‘The only thing we can do now is to do everything to help Ukraine.’”

Prior to speaking at the Munk School, Karis attended the Halifax International Security Forum and met with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. In his speech, he emphasized the importance of Canada’s role in our shared international security. “The value of the trans-Atlantic bond goes beyond the numbers of troops and weapons systems. It is a political community, a community of values, and we have demonstrated already that we are much stronger together.”

“Putin’s strategy for the moment is to coerce us into giving up on Ukraine by imposing costs on our societies. His primary tool is to weaponize its energy resources by restricting their accessibility, thereby threatening shortages, and by damaging our economies through inflation. In his immediate neighbourhood, Russia can also use hybrid warfare to scare and destabilize. This includes sabotaging energy infrastructure, using the migration weapon and carrying out cyber-attacks.

“We must be prepared to overcome these challenges, and not allow those tactics to cow us.”

Estonian President Alar Karis spoke with Munk School students and community members (photo by Jamie Napier)

Karis described Estonia’s own efforts to increase its national military capabilities, find alternative sources of energy, enhance energy infrastructure and secure its own borders with Russia in the face of this pressure. He also spoke of Estonia’s efforts to support Ukraine, taking in 60,000 refugees – equivalent to four per cent of the country’s total population – and giving the equivalent of a quarter of its total military budget in equipment and weapons in support of the war effort.

Karis is not the first Estonian leader to have visited the Munk School, which is home to the only endowed chair of Estonian studies in North America. In 2018, then-Prime Minister Jüri Ratas gave a public lecture, followed by former President Toomas Ilves in 2019. Karis, a molecular geneticist and biologist by training, was sworn in last year. He had earlier served as rector of the University of Tartu (a U of T partner institution) and visited U of T in that capacity in 2009.

Hearing directly from Estonia’s president was particularly important for Aleksa Gold, president of the Estonian Students Association U of T, and a four-time Estonian national swim champion. “It was a real privilege to have President Alar Karis join us at U of T and provide important insights into and educate us on the current turmoil in Europe. Being a student, especially one whose cultural roots come from a small nation, it was special to have the country’s leader come and take time out of his schedule to be with us and teach us valuable lessons.”

Chloe Qin, a third-year history major, was struck by Karis’s steadfast commitment to Ukraine. “It is incumbent upon Estonia and Canada, two of the leading democracies in the world, to defend liberalism by supporting the efforts of courageous Ukrainians in the defence of their homeland against Russian aggression.”

For Karis, the need to support Ukraine is personal. “It is important to realize, that when we talk about abstract concepts – security architecture, democracy, freedom – we are actually talking about very real consequences for real people. Violence, death, and destruction happen to people.”

“In Estonia, we have experienced the same things you see on your screens happening in Ukraine,” said Karis. “In fact, many Estonians had to flee to Canada and other free countries in the 1940s to avoid the same fate that befell the inhabitants of Bucha, Mariupol, Kherson. We will always remain grateful to Canada of accepting Estonian refugees, some of whom, in their desperation, crossed the Atlantic on self-made ‘Viking boats’. And we are grateful to Canada for doing its important part in NATO, the organization that safeguards our collective security and through that, our shared values.”

Karis implored the audience to continue fighting aggression and for the democratic values that bind our countries.

“We must all think that this is our business. I still remember what it meant to live in the Soviet Union – and many Estonians do. This is why we will not stop fighting for freedom and we will not stop helping others who do the same. I hope that we are in this together.”

Power lies in partnerships, president of Kosovo tells students during U of T visit

Christopher.Sorensen — Thu, 25 Nov 2021 18:15:00 +0000

Power lies in partnerships, president of Kosovo tells students during U of T visit

Christopher.Sorensen Thu, 11/25/2021 - 13:15

Cutline

Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani visited Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, where she spoke to students and answered their questions (photo by Dewey Chang)

Gillian Mathurin

Topic

Global Lens

Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy

Faculty of Arts & Science

Global

Graduate Students

Joseph Wong

“There is power in partnerships. Our power truly lies in the friendships and the partnerships we create around the world. None of us will be successful [against the global challenges we face] unless we really work together.”

That was the message Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani shared at the ��Ƶ’s Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy earlier this week.

“Countries, no matter how small they are, can have a big impact,” said Osmani, noting that after the fall of Kabul earlier this year, Kosovo was the first country in the world to offer to take in refugees. “We were refugees ourselves. We know what it feels like. We know what it is to have these doors open when you are forced to flee because no one really chooses to be a refugee, but anyone can become one.

“For us, the words ‘never forget’ have never been just a slogan; they have meant everything to us. So, if we get a chance to lend a helping hand to those in need to those who have been expelled from their homes, separated from their loved ones, forced to leave the house where they were born and raised – if there's one nation that will help no matter how small we are, that will be us, because today we’re alive. We are sovereign, independent and thriving.”

Osmani, who holds a PhD and is former professor of international law and international relations, spoke with an in-person audience of Munk School students that was broadcast to the public. She was welcomed to U of T by Joseph Wong, vice-president, international, Peter Loewen, director of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, and Robert Austin, associate director of the Munk School’s Centre for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies.

Professor Joseph Wong, President Vjosa Osmani and Professor Robert Austin (photo by Dewey Chang)

“President Osmani’s experience – especially during the 1999 war, her discussion of Kosovo’s support of refugees from Afghanistan, the need for European integration – really touched on subjects that are not just relevant for Kosovo, but for all of us,” said Austin, a professor and expert on the Balkans who teaches “Conflicts and Para-States in the EU’s Backyard,” a course that explores the regional disputes between Balkan countries as they bid to join the European Union.

“I first met Dr. Osmani in 2008 when I was in Kosovo for the independence declaration. I was travelling with 10 students from the ��Ƶ for an international course module and it was just luck that we arrived the day before Kosovo declared its independence. I could tell then that she was a person of incredible integrity and so I was delighted when she became Kosovo’s president.”

Austin noted that Osmani is not the first Kosovar president to visit U of T. Kosovo’s founding father, Ibrahim Rugova, visited the Munk School in 2001. “It was an extremely important signal of Canada’s support for Kosovo that came well in advance of Kosovo’s independence in 2008,” Austin said. “The late President Rugova, who died in 2006, remains an iconic figure in Kosovo. I met with his widow on Kosovo Independence Day in February 2008 in Prishtina and she said his visit to Toronto was his favorite.”

Osmani praised the support of Canada and Canadians.

“It is because we had friends by our side, friends like Canada, who opened its doors to 8,000 Kosovar refugees,” she said. “They were there for us, not just when the war was going on … We had friends like you, we had friends like Professor Austin, who were our voice when we had no voice. [They] made sure that the voice of the people of Kosovo was heard in every table in the parliaments around the world and that really opened doors for us. When you are heard and you have that chance to tell the truth about what's going on in your country and when you really cherish these friendships, then miracles can happen like they did in the Republic of Kosovo.”

Hearing Kosovo’s president speak about the country’s struggles and efforts to chart a new course brought to life to what students have been learning in the program, said Ashley Renz, a second-year master’s student at the Munk School’s Centre for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies.

“In my studies, I’ve focused on sexual trauma survivors in Kosovo during and after the war. She has brought the issue into the foreground, working with local women’s and advocacy organizations, and emphasizing the role of women in shaping post-war policy. Her administration has brought major changes in terms of providing recognition of the trauma that so many women endured and in bringing the issue to light,” said Renz, noting that Kosovo now marks April 14 as a day of recognition for sexual trauma survivors. “Her passion is so evident. You can see how much she cares about the future of Kosovo.”

For Isabelle Avakumovic-Pointon, a student in the first year of her master’s degree in European and Russian affairs, the president’s words gave context to her family’s own lived experience.

“My family is from the Balkans,” she said. “The presence of history, the trauma of history, the complications of history are stories I’ve grown up with. It was fascinating to hear the president of Kosovo speak about those things and how they affect policy in the day-to-day. President Osmani recognized that Kosovo is facing significant challenges but believes that they can overcome them … That was very refreshing. To hear the president speak for herself and about her people was really powerful.”

“For me, the fact that our students – graduate and undergraduate – had an exclusive audience with Kosovo’s president was the best part of the day,” said Austin. “[The students] were extremely prepared and I could feel the emotion in the air. For them to be able to stand up in front of a president and ask tough questions – these are the opportunities that stay with them forever.”

Isaure Vorstman agrees.

“It was an unforgettable experience,” said Vorstman, a master’s candidate in European and Russian affairs. “It's one thing for me to be given the chance to study a topic that I am passionate about in graduate school, but yet another to have my own graduate program organize these kinds of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities that motivate me even more to deepen my knowledge and understanding of these parts of the world.”