Skip to content
GIVING DAY is April 11! Starting now, you can support CSSH students and programs with a $5+ gift to any of our funds.
Apply
Stories

Why Ukrainian neutrality may not be a pathway to peace

People in this story

As peace talks between Russia and Ukraine unfold, one possibility is that Ukraine becomes a neutral state. Negotiations have been taking place this week in Istanbul, Turkey, amid an apparent tentative stalemate between the two sides. Ukrainian neutrality is reportedly on the table. But a neutral Ukraine wouldn’t necessarily ensure peace in the region and, in fact, may only heighten tensions in the future, says Mai’a Cross, the Edward W. Brooke Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at Northeastern.

“Neutrality means Ukraine would effectively forfeit its ability to have a foreign policy of any meaning or significance,” Cross says. “It would mean Ukraine would not be able to join NATO or any other political alliances, or host foreign military bases. It may even mean demilitarization.” As a result, Cross says Ukraine would need security guarantees from other countries, as neutrality would mean effectively giving up its ability to ensure its own national security; but the specifics of that arrangement, in terms of its own government and its relationships with other countries, are contingent on the ongoing talks.

Continue reading at News@Northeastern.

More Stories

image of new show

The hit series ‘Shogun’ is exposing more people to Japanese history. But how accurate is it?

03.28.2024
image of Trump Media & Technology Group stock market trading information is seen on a television at the Nasdaq Marketplace on March 26, 2024 in New York City. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Is Trump Media & Technology Group a meme stock? Finance experts draw parallels to GameStop, crypto.

03.28.2024
image of dark silver iphone in hand with title

European regulators are cracking down on Alphabet, Apple and Meta. Will that have an impact on how their products work around the world?

03.28.24
All Stories