The War in Ukraine and the Global South: Perceptions, Reactions, and Implications

When Russian forces invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, there was an almost immediate international response. Not only were NATO members quick to condemn Russia’s aggression and pledge material and moral support to Ukraine. On 2 March 2022, an overwhelming majority of members of the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution demanding Russia stop its offensive and immediately withdraw all troops.

However, neither the outrage against the Russian invasion nor the coordinated activities by mainly Western countries to support the Ukrainian war effort and sanction Russia were universally shared. Non-Western powers such as China, India, and South Africa abstained from the UN vote, while others like Brazil and Saudi-Arabia maintain a self-declared “neutral” stance. At the same time, the war and the sanctions regime imposed on Russia have raised fears of disruptions to international economic supply lines – with stark implications for food and energy security across the globe.

This GIGA Forum focuses on the perceptions and consequences of, as well as reactions to, the war in Ukraine in countries of Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and sub-Saharan Africa: How much of an epochal change does the war signify for these regions? How will the war affect the Global South more broadly? Are there pronounced regional differences in these regards?

Speakers: Prof. Dr. Matthias Basedau is Director of the GIGA Institute for African Affairs.

Prof. Dr. Heike Holbig is a Senior Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Asian Studies.

Prof. Dr. Víctor M. Mijares is Assistant Professor at the Universidad de los Andes, Colombia.

Dr. Johannes Plagemann is a Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Asian Studies.

Prof. Dr. Eckart Woertz is Director of the GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies.

Moderation: Dr. David Kuehn is a Senior Research Fellow at the GIGA, and academic coordinator of the GIGA Forum series.