Seminar

04 October 2022 16:0018:00

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Can the Ukraine conflict build bridges between Africa and Europe?

On 4 October 2022 from 1600-1800 CEST (1500-1700 EAT), ECDPM’s Philomena Apiko will act as a speaker at the webinar ‘Can the Ukraine conflict build bridges between Africa and Europe?’ which is being jointly organised by ECDPM, Amani AfricaInstitute for Security Studies (ISS) and Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS)

ECDPM staff involved

The war in Ukraine has elicited diverse reactions in the geopolitical landscape and created tensions across the globe. African and European actors have taken diverging positions in their response to the conflict. Although all actors have vocalised concern and condemnation of the war, they have varied in their approach regarding engagement with the parties to the conflict and approach to mitigating the conflict. This has put a strain on the relationship between Western (EU) and African actors, with tensions being observed in various arenas where these stakeholders interact, including in Addis Ababa.

Although there is mutual recognition of the importance of AU-EU relations and stronger strategic collaboration between them, the differing views and actions on the conflict in Ukraine have threatened to jeopardise the improving AU-EU rapport.

To bridge the gap between the diverging perspectives that exist between the various European and African stakeholders, a convening of actors from European and African civil society organisations and think tanks will discuss the historical underpinnings that have shaped AU-EU relationship and how these are linked to existing differences, and varying approaches and positions on the conflict in Ukraine.

Discussions will seek to produce a common understanding of the challenges at hand and devise a conciliatory and collective approach to mitigating the conflict in Ukraine towards reversing the drawbacks the war has had on the world’s economy, including in Africa, as well as ensuring the protection civilians impacted by the war in Ukraine.

Speakers

Dr Giovanni Faleg, Senior Analyst, EUISS
Philomena Apiko, Head AU-EU relations, ECDPM
Dr Yonas Adaye Adeto, Commissioner, Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission and Associate Professor of Peace Studies, Addis Ababa University
Liesl Louw-Vaudran, Senior Researcher, ISS Pretoria