The global angst against Putin has been so profound that sport has been compelled to come out behind its customary veil of ‘neutrality’ in political matters.
Straight from our experts, here are five books to help you understand what’s happening right now in Ukraine and Russia, from a must-read history of Ukraine to a literary classic with insights into the Russian soul.
Politics with Michelle Grattan: Sarah Ferguson on reporting from Ukraine
Michelle Grattan speaks with ABC journalist Sarah Ferguson about her experiences reporting from Ukraine, how she was able to capture this story, and her views on where the conflict is likely to go from now
International diplomacy: Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, addressing the Swedish parliament on March 24.
EPA-EFE/Paul Wennerholm
A memorial took place on April 27, 2022 for former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who died in March at age 84. Many of the foreign policy concepts she helped bring to the post-Cold War world remain.
An expert in post-World War II displaced people looks at how history informs the current situation in Ukraine.
Smoke and fireballs rise during clashes between protesters and police in central Kyiv, Ukraine on Jan. 25, 2014. The “Heavenly Hundred” is what Ukrainians in Kyiv call those who died during months of anti-government protests in 2013-14.
(AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
A need for enhanced presidential power, inherited from the early days of post-Communist transition, ruined any chances of compromise between Ukraine and Russia years ago.
People who fled the war in Ukraine rest inside an indoor gymnasium being used as a refugee centre in the village of Medyka, a border crossing between Poland and Ukraine, on March 15, 2022.
(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
The European Union is once again faced with the danger of destabilization. Putin’s cyberwar on free societies using the migration crisis went well in 2015. He must not succeed now in Poland or beyond.
Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe demonstrate against the war in Ukraine, Monday, March 14, 2022 in Strasbourg, eastern France.
(AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)
As we observe with the war in Ukraine, humanities skills are crucial for understanding 21st-century problems.
Allies? Or client and patron: Belarus president, Alexandr Lukashenko, and Russian president, Vladimir Putin, after Kremlin talks in February 2022.
EPA-EFE/Sergey Guneev/Sputnik/Kremlin pool
As the invasion continues, humanitarian workers could become a target of the Russian army.
Cardiff Philharmonic came under fire for removing the Russian composer Tchaikovsky from its performance schedule, in response to the Ukraine war.
IanDagnall Computing | Alamy Stock Photo
As the world becomes more divided by this war, the Chinese yuan may become the safe haven for Russia and other liked-minded countries.
A man walks past the remains of a house of culture following a night air raid in the village of Byshiv, 40 kilometres west of Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, March 4, 2022.
(AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
Social media has helped draw people’s attention towards the crisis in Ukraine, but consuming richer forms of Ukrainian culture will need to happen in order to sustain that attention.
A coal power plant in Niederaussem, Germany.
Markue / shutterstock