Dear Students,
Last night Russia launched a full-scale military intervention in Ukraine, blatantly violating international law and other established norms of international behavior. Our thoughts are with the people of Ukraine as well as with Ukrainians living in the Czech Republic, many of them our friends.
The war in Ukraine poses no direct security risks for the Czech Republic, as the country is a member of NATO and does not border Ukraine. US President Joe Biden has already warned Russia that its incursion into a territory of any NATO country would be considered an attack on all NATO members. Russia is well aware of that. So you are safe in Prague.
The Russian attack on Ukraine may, however, set into motion a large migration wave, with many Ukrainians eventually reaching the Czech Republic. Many Czechs will try to help the refugees, and you may want to help as well. If so, our staff will be happy to assist you in finding organizations that will be active in helping Ukrainian refugees and in other forms of volunteer activities.
There will also be efforts to collect money and material assistance for people in Ukraine, and if you want to get involved with that, we will be happy to help you with identifying civic associations that will organize such activities.
In the next few days we will also organize a talk at NYU Prague with experts on Russia and Ukraine. This could help those of you who need more information to navigate the complicated set of events that will take place in the next few weeks, and I encourage you to attend.
If you want to talk about what is happening, please do not hesitate to contact our staff and faculty. Several of our professors (Prof. Salamon, Prof. Urban, Prof. Murad) have expertise in international and Russian affairs, and should be able to answer your questions.
Sincerely yours,
Jiri Pehe
Director
NYU Prague