Strategic Pathways to Ending the Russo-Ukrainian War : The Conference on Russia Papers 2025

Abstract

The 2025 edition of the BALTDEFCOL’s Conference on Russia Papers, published over three years after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, examines the strategic pathways to resolving the Russo-Ukrainian war. This volume consists of chapters from scholars, experts, practitioners, and policymakers who scrutinise the war and its related dynamics through diverse approaches, first focusing on the international ramifications of the war and the roles of major global powers and institutions. Military insights, including those from strategic leadership, technological advancements, and electronic warfare, are then assessed. To analyse these issues, the contributors employ diverse methodologies, offering a comprehensive and nuanced analysis. While definitive solutions remain elusive, the interconnected conclusions provide critical insights for policymakers to navigate strategic conditions towards a resolution of the war that preserves Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity. This volume underscores the imperative of supporting Ukraine to uphold international law and order, emphasising the broader significance for the Baltic and Western nations. It is acknowledged that Ukraine must be supported, and that Russia poses a global threat, though strategies for moving forward are varied and sometimes mutually exclusive in their assumptions and end states.