The end of the world as we know it: Russia's war against Ukraine in the new global disorder
About the session
Commentary on Russia's war against Ukraine is often focused on great power conflict: Russia against "the West" or Russia against NATO. In this second roundtable, Faculty of Arts scholars will present the idea that today Russia cannot be considered a great power – that its failed aggression against Ukraine has further undermined its global status. In contrast, Ukraine has risen to the status of a middle power as a result of its successful war of defense and international coalition building.
The discussion will examine and debate the shift in the great powers of our world – how perhaps Ukraine’s staunchest allies are other democratic middle powers, and that perhaps the US and China are bystanders rather than active drivers of this military confrontation.
What does this war reveal about the future of global power? Is it the first major conflict of a new multi-polar era? What does it mean for countries like Australia, and how is it reshaping international security and the role of nuclear weapons? Join us to unpack these critical questions and explore the far-reaching implications for the world order.
About the speakers
Professor Mark Edele
Professor Mark Edele is Hansen Chair in History and Head of the History Program at the University of Melbourne. A historian of the Soviet Union and its successor states, he is one of the editors of 'Elements in Soviet and Post-Soviet History' (Cambridge University Press). He teaches the histories of the Soviet Union, of the Second World War, and of dictatorship and democracy in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. His latest book, 'Russia’s war against Ukraine: The Whole Story', was re-published in an updated and enlarged edition by Melbourne University Press in June 2026.
Associate Professor Terry Macdonald
Associate Professor Terry Macdonald lectures in International Relations at the University of Melbourne. She is author of ‘Global Stakeholder Democracy’ (Oxford University Press 2008) and co-editor of ‘Global Political Justice’ (Routledge 2017), and is currently completing a new book called ‘Global Political Legitimacy: A Normative Theory of Pluralist World Order’. Before joining the University of Melbourne, she held positions at Monash University, the Australian National University, and Merton College, Oxford University. She has a Doctor of Philosophy and an Master of Philosophy in International Relations from Oxford University (Nuffield College), and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Melbourne.
Professor Christian Reus-Smit
Professor Christian Reus-Smit is in the International Relations discipline at the University of Melbourne. His recent books include 'The Oxford Handbook of History and International Relations' (Oxford 2023); 'International Relations: A Very Short Introduction' (Oxford 2020); 'Culture and Order in World Politics' (Cambridge: 2020); 'On Cultural Diversity' (Cambridge 2018); and 'The Globalization of International Society' (Oxford 2017). Prior to joining the University of Melbourne, he held Chairs at the University of Queensland, the European University Institute, and the Australian National University (where he was Head of the Department of International Relations from 2001 to 2010). He was elected a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Science in Australia in 2008.
Dr Sarah Walsh
Dr Sarah Walsh is lecturer in history at the University of Melbourne. She has held positions at the University of Sydney, Universidade de Lisboa, and Washington State University. Her areas of study include the history of human difference (race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality), knowledge production, immigration, and extremism in modern Latin America. She has published in top-ranked journals such as the 'Hispanic American Historical Review', 'History of Science', and the 'Catholic Historical Review'. She has also appeared on The Briefing Podcast (ABC), Sunday Night with Safran (Triple J), and Triple R radio. Most recently, she has given public lectures as a part of the Talks on Tuesdays series.
Further information
Event image sourced from en.kremlin.ru.
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