ASEEES Conference in the United States

From 30 November to 3 December 2023, the 55th Annual Convention of the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) was held in Philadelphia, United States. Myroslava Antonovych, Associate Professor at the Department of International and European Law and Director of the Centre for Genocide and Human Rights Studies at the Faculty of Law at NaUKMA, took part in the convention.

Myroslava Antonovych delivered a presentation on the obligation under international law to hold Russia accountable for the crime of genocide against the Ukrainian nation. The discussion addressed practical aspects of holding Russia accountable and the significance of the recognition of the Holodomor as genocide by numerous states over the previous two years for understanding Russia’s ongoing genocide against Ukrainians.

The panel “The Holodomor-Genocide in Ukraine Then and the Ongoing Russian Genocide Now: A Crime without Punishment”, at which Myroslava Antonovych spoke, was one of more than 600 panels held during the convention. Up to 40 sessions took place simultaneously, allowing participants to discuss issues related to their respective fields of research and academic interests.

Reflecting on the convention, Myroslava Antonovych said:

“The conference brought together more than 2,000 in-person participants from around the world, featured a programme the size of a substantial book, and was organised to the highest standard. Over the course of three days, it allowed me to update my knowledge in many fields, meet colleagues whom I had not seen for a long time, engage in discussions, and find answers to many questions.

“In addition to my own panel, I attended several other sessions, including a roundtable discussion of the book Ukraine’s Unnamed War: Before the Russian Invasion of 2022 by Dominique Arel and Jesse Driscoll. I joined the discussion concerning the book’s title, as this is not a ‘Ukrainian war’ but a Russian war, controlled and waged by Russia since 2014, even when it operated through proxies.

“I referred to the European Court of Human Rights’ decision in Ukraine and the Netherlands v. Russia, which recognised Russia’s effective control over the eastern regions of Ukraine occupied by the Russian Federation since 2014. I am grateful to the Faculty of Law at NaUKMA and the US Holodomor Genocide Foundation for supporting my participation in the 55th ASEEES Convention.”