Academic Workshop: "The Long Echoes of the War: New Russophone Narratives Beyond Russia"

The Skytte Institute, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Estonia, will host an academic workshop on Friday, 17 October 2025, in Tartu (Lossi 36, room 323).

As part of the Johan Skytte Institute’s ongoing collaboration with the Estonian Foreign Ministry, the event will explore the evolving Russophone narratives emerging beyond Russia in the aftermath of the war.

Schedule:

10. 00 – Opening of the workshop (Prof. Andrey Makarychev)

10.15 - 11.00: „Reinventing the homeland(s): Contested diasporas of Russian-speakers in Germany“

• Dr. Tatiana Golova, ZOIS, Berlin
• Discussant: Thomas Linsenmaier (University of Tartu)

11.15 – 12.00: “Pro-Russian Narratives in Occupied Territories of Ukraine”

• Dr. Yulia Kurnyshova, University of Helsinki
• Discussant: Dr. Vladimir Sazonov (University of Tartu and Estonian Military Academy)

12.00 – 13.00 Lunch break

13.15 – 14.00: "Reconsidering Triadic Nexus Model: the case of Russian-speaking youth in Latvia."

• Dr. Ieva Bērziņa, Associated Professor, Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences, Latvia
• Discussant: Azniv Tadevosyan, Johan Skytte Institute, University of Tartu

14.15 – 15.00: "Echoes of War in Exile: Narratives of Russian Migrants in Serbia."

• Kristina Nikolic, Belgrade Center for Security Policy
• Discussant: Oksana Belova – Dalton, Johan Skytte Institute, University of Tartu

15.00 – 15.15 Coffee break

15.20 – 16.00: „Bordering Through Language: Actor Categorisation in Media and Civil Society (the Case of Finland)“

• Ivan Serbin, University of Tampere
• Discussant: Dr. Yulia Kurnyshova, University of Helsinki

16.00 – 16.40: „Russophone Narratives in Estonia during the War Time: a Biopolitical Analysis“

• Andrey Makarychev, Professor of Regional Political Studies, University of Tartu
• Discussant: Dr. George Spencer Terry, Baltic Defense College

16.45 – Russophone Narratives Across Europe: a Practitioner’s Perspective (Prof. Alar Streiman, University of Tartu and Estonian MFA)

17.00 - General discussion and closing statements (moderated by Prof. Andrey Makarychev)