The Annual Meeting of Yalta European Strategy (YES) — “The Future Is Being Decided in Ukraine” — was held on September 8-9, 2023 in Kyiv.
The results of Russia’s war against Ukraine will be decisive not only for neighboring countries in the region, but also for the whole world. That was stated by Francis Fukuyama, Stanford University Senior Fellow at the Yalta European Strategy (YES) Annual Meeting “The Future is Being Decided in Ukraine”, organised by YES in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.
“Depending on the outcome of this war, a lot may change in other countries. Georgia, Moldova and Kazakhstan – each of these countries will be immediately affected in the event that Russia wins, withstands, and is able to keep the captured Ukrainian territories. Russia is encroaching on the sovereign territories of these countries. I hope that they will have the opportunity to develop as independent democracies,” said Francis Fukuyama.
The consequences of the war will also affect Southeast Asia, believes the Senior Fellow at Stanford University.
“Until this war, almost no one in the region would have accepted the idea that China would dare to use force against Taiwan and overthrow the democratically elected government of that country,” added Francis Fukuyama.
The outcome of the war will also affect the domestic political situation in the USA, where representatives of the right-wing political forces gravitate towards a more authoritarian model, or a so-called “strong hand”, preferring to see someone similar to Putin as their leader.
According to Comfort Ero, President and Executive Director of the International Crisis Group, the outcome of the war will also be decisive, for countries in Africa.
“I come from Nigeria, the largest country in West Africa. We have a saying that when Nigeria sneezes, all of West Africa catches cold. The same can be said about Ukraine and its influence on the European security architecture. How this war ends will mean a lot not only for Europe, but also for the rest of the world, because when Europe sneezes, the rest of the world catches cold,” summarised Comfort Ero.
