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Global Affairs Session 80 18 August 2026 UKRAINE AND RUSSIA — A FOREVER ENGAGEMENT? A war deep into its fifth year By August 2026, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had entered its fifth bloody year with no durable ceasefire and no decisive battlefield breakthrough. The conflict had become a contest of drones, ballistic missiles, air defence, logistics and industrial capacity, while stalled diplomacy and the Iran war reshaped military resources, energy markets and Russia’s leverage.

Global Affairs Session 73 6 August 2026 THE KINDLEBERGER TRAP When no one wants to lead The Kindleberger Trap describes a world in which the established power stops supplying global public goods, while the rising power does not replace it. Trump’s transactional America, Xi Jinping’s limited responsibility and Putin’s disruptive strategy point towards fragmented power, competing blocs, weaker institutions and crises without a trusted stabiliser.

Global Affairs Session 43 26 May 2026 RUSSIA-UKRAINE: DEADLY GAME Shared roots, divided histories, unresolved war Ukraine and Russia share deep historical links through Kyivan Rus', but their paths diverged sharply after the Mongol invasion, leaving Ukraine to develop between competing empires while Moscow grew into a large one. Post-1991 disputes over Crimea, security and identity escalated into war in 2014 and full-scale invasion in 2022, a conflict still unresolved as of 2026.

Global Affairs Session 14 14 April 2026 MESSY NEW WORLD ORDER AWAITS US A messy multilateralism awaits The United States built the post-1945 order and remained its dominant pole until China emerged as a second true pole. Washington preferred a controlled transition, but Russia’s 2022 system shock, Iran’s regional leverage, Europe’s uneven rise and the manoeuvring of swing states are producing a fragmented, layered and transactional order instead.