Ukraine's Foreign Minister Shares Insights on the War and Ukrainian Determination

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba took part virtually in a special Belfer Center event at Harvard Kennedy School on February 22, 2023 where he discussed the roots of the war with Russia and the determination of the Ukrainian people.

During a riveting conversation with Belfer Center Co-Director Eric Rosenbach and Senior Fellow Ambassador Paula Dobriansky, Minister Kuleba shared his views on the origins of the war, the significance of support from the U.S. and internationally, and what he foresees in the future.

Beginning in 1991, Minister Kuleba said, a "chain of mistakes set the stage for the war I just came from." The Cold War was over, he said, "but Ukraine was left outside in the cold."

Later, Kuleba compared this time in Ukraine's history to the United States. "Modern Ukraine is not only a state," he said. "It's a project in the making."

The event, organized by the Belfer Center's Future of Diplomacy Project, drew a standing-room only crowd of students and faculty who gathered in-person at Harvard Kennedy School to listen and ask questions while nearly 250 more watched via Zoom. Minister Kuleba, who had hoped to be at Harvard in-person for the event, spoke remotely from New York where he is taking part in UN General Assembly meetings. 

Also read a Harvard Gazette article about the event -"Ukraine sees victory ahead, shift to West"