Associate Professor and Director of the Ellison Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies Scott Radnitz co-authors with other professors in the U.S., Europe and UK “An Open Letter in Support of Central European University” in The Chronicle of Higher Education. Central European University, known as CEU, is based in Hungary’s capital, Budapest. In early April, the Hungarian

A century years after his murder, Rasputin continues to excite the popular imagination as the personification of evil. Numerous biographies, novels, and films recount his mysterious rise to power as Nicholas and Alexandra’s confidant and the guardian of the sickly heir to the Russian throne. But as the prizewinning historian Douglas Smith shows, the true story of

On April 12, David C. Engerman, Professor of History at Brandeis University, spoke at the University of Washington about the Soviet Union’s position in the Third World. His lecture, “How to Lose by Winning: Soviet Aid to India During the Cold War,” examined economic and military aid to India in the 1950s and 1960s. Engerman discussed how

Bollywood and Bolsheviks: Indo-Soviet Collaboration in Literature and Film, 1954-1991 will be on display in the Allen Library at UW through May 31, 2017. The exhibit is sponsored by the Ellison Center, South Asian Studies Center, the Center for Global Studies, the College of Arts & Sciences, and the Simpson Center for the Humanities. To visit the

On April 1, the University of Washington’s Ellison Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies partnered with Reed College to host the 23rd annual REECAS NW Conference. Scholars, students, and educators from the Pacific Northwest gathered at Reed College in Portland, Oregon to present their research on a wide variety of topics, including

MIT Professor Emeritus and former US Director of Central Intelligence John Deutch spoke about the future of US nuclear security as part of the Henry M. Jackson/James R. Schlesinger Visitor Lecture Series. The public lecture marked the inauguration of the Henry M. Jackson/James R. Schlesinger Visitor Lecture Series, a program funded by the Henry M. Jackson

A new book by Robert Bedeski, Affiliate Professor at the Ellison Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies, draws lessons from the life of Genghis Khan that provide insight into how states and societies form. Bedeski’s new work, Genghis Khan – Sustaining Existence, explores how the Mongol leader was able to survive to old age

Maria Lipman, a Russian analyst and editor of the online journal Counterpoint, was the featured speaker at the 2017 Herbert J. Ellison Memorial Lecture at the University of Washington. In this lecture, Lipman discusses Russia’s past and future as the country marks the 100th anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution. According to Lipman, Russia does not

Students from Inglemoor High School in Kenmore are gearing up for the National Finals of the Euro Challenge in New York City. Following a close competition, the Inglemoor team was named the winner of the Washington State Regional Euro Challenge for the team’s proposal to focus on renewable energy as a way to alleviate unemployment in Cyprus. Inglemoor

It is no secret that journalists and artists are under increasing pressure to steer clear of touchy subjects and unflattering portrayals of the Kremlin in today’s Russia. Victoria Lomasko, whose work stands at an intersection of art and journalism, understands that better than most. From the lives of sex workers to juvenile prisons, her graphic reportage