In view of the threat of aggression from violent powers and attacks on inter­na­tional law, to what extent should the war against Ukraine be seen as a “turning point” for Europe? And what conclu­sions must European policy­makers draw? After a contri­bution from Timothy Garton Ash, the panel of Olha Stefan­ishyna, Robin Wagener, Karolina Wigura and Andrius Kubilius explored these questions.

The second panel was made up of four members of the Bundestag, Thomas Hacker, Anton Hofreiter, Tilmann Kuban, and Christian Petry, and the Ukrainian Ambas­sador Oleksii Makeiev. They discussed the EU accession of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. In December 2023, the EU Member States will decide what steps these three countries must take in order to join the EU.

“Are we doing enough for Ukraine to win?” was the question addressed by the panel with Justyna Gotkowska, Christian Mölling, Maryna Vorotniuk, Alex Vidman and Nico Lange. The partic­i­pants agreed that the West’s support is not enough and discussed what needs to be done specif­i­cally to support Ukraine.

How can those respon­sible for war crimes and crimes under inter­na­tional law be held accountable? Christoph Heusgen, Tania Freiin von Uslar-Gleichen, Anton Korynevych and Frank Hoffmeister discussed questions of inter­na­tional criminal law.

Olaksandra Azarkhina, Maria Repko, Torsten Wöllert, Ulrike Hopp-Nishanka, Artem Nekrasov and Rebecca Harms discussed how Ukrainian society is preparing for the next winter, what support Ukraine needs and whether a green trans­for­mation is possible despite the war.

On the panel, Georg Milbradt, Olga Skrypnyk, Jean P. Froehly, Tetyana Gavrysh and Oksana Myronko discussed the challenges and oppor­tu­nities that Ukraine is facing now and will face after the war.

What impact is the Russian war of annihi­lation having on neigh­bouring countries? And what expec­ta­tions does civil society in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia have of the EU? Leonid Litra, Ivane Chkhik­vadze, Natalia Stercul and Dirk Schübel discussed these issues.

What conclu­sions can be drawn with regard to European security policy and the security order? Pavlo Klimkin, Agnieszka Brugger, Ulrich Speck and Roderich Kiesewetter agreed that the European security order is in a deep crisis.

On 11 October 2023, an inter­na­tional conference organised by the Centre for Liberal Modernity shed light on the signif­i­cance of the Russian war of aggression for Europe. What can we do to ensure that a free and united Ukraine emerges from the war? How can war criminals be held accountable? How do we shape the European security order of the future?