The Future of Ukraine Panel Discussion

The Coalition for Global Prosperity were delighted to partner with the Mines Advisory Group (MAG) for a panel discussion on the future of Ukraine at this year’s Conservative Party Conference. On the panel were Lesia Vasylenko (Ukrainian Member of Parliament), Darren Cormack (CEO of MAG), Jo Gideon MP, and Flick Drummond MP. The discussion was chaired by Ryan Henson, CGP’s Chief Executive.

Ryan Henson welcomed guests to the event and introduced the Coalition for Global Prosperity, explaining that CGP champions the UK as an international development superpower and believes that a strong aid budget, alongside defence and diplomacy, will bring security, prosperity and freedom not just to other countries, but to Britain as well.

Darren Cormack gave his opening remarks and outlined the three key areas of support MAG offers internationally: management of weapons, conflict response, and dealing with the legacy of conflict.

Darren said that he left Ukraine 10 days ago, and saw firsthand how the use of mines and relentless artillery has had a “deadly effect.” Between 70,000 and 160,000 square kilometres of the country are suspected as hazardous, but he emphasised that the fear this uncertainty stimulates has far-reaching implications, impacting people's freedom of movement.

He highlighted the dangerous usage of explosive weapons in populated areas, stating that “9 out of 10 people killed or injured are civilians.” He said that while the UK government was committed to Ukraine, there was a long-term problem of short-term funding cycles, which requires attention.

Jo Gideon MP revealed that seeing UK-funded aid projects during her trip to Lebanon with CGP and MAG earlier this year clarified for her “how utterly important this work is.” For her, the thing that made her grasp the scale of this constant threat is the compulsory provision of your blood type before entering a mine removal site. She said that “you think that war is over when the troops recede, but clearly it isn’t.”

Flick Drummond MP shared some statistics from the Ukrainian Centre for Defence Studies. She said that she was particularly concerned about children: 1200 Ukrainian children are victims of full-scale armed aggression in Russian-occupied territory; 416 children are known to have died; and 84 have been wounded. 2562 education institutions have been damaged with 295 completely destroyed. She stressed the scale of this “horrendous humanitarian crisis”, and the economic support Ukraine needs from allies. Drummond affirmed that the UK government will do whatever it can to support Ukraine.

Lesia Vasylenko, Ukrainian MP, noted that given her position as a Member of the Environmental Committee and Chair of the Sub-Committee on Climate Change, in normal times she would be speaking about how Ukraine can contribute to global prosperity through environmental measures. However, over the past 7 months, she explained she has, along with every other MP and citizen, been doing her best “to keep the country safe, to keep it existing.”

Over ½ of the territory of Ukraine may be covered in landmines, she said. Inhabitants of towns outside of Kyiv are extremely limited in their movements due to the density of explosives in the landscape, with frequent emergency warnings from the authorities. The main victims of these mines are children, she said.

Ukraine has had to mine their coastal areas for defence purposes, which Vasylenko noted would need a lot of demining in the future. She said it was not certain how long this process would take, but that it would take as long as it needs to, because victory comes first. “Ukrainians will fight for as long as we have to, until the very last Russian soldier leaves our land”, she said. “I have no doubt British people would do the same if it was their land”, which is why there is so much support coming from the UK for Ukraine’s fight, she explained.

True victory has a “formula”, which involves a non-repetition guarantee: all the perpetrators are punished. Further to this, reparations are needed from Russia, Vasylenko stated. “We cannot stand for years of countering aggression. We need to put an end to aggression once and for all”, she said.

Panellists discussed global food security and the importance of Ukraine’s role in feeding the world. Vasylenko said that many continents were suffering from the grain shortage, including Africa, Asia, and Europe as well.

Henson asked whether given the ongoing energy crisis in Europe, Ukraine might feel growing pressure from partners to enter into a “false compromise” with Russia. Vasylenko stated that Ukraine had already tried to compromise with Russia in the past, and those circumstances still led to Russia’s full-scale invasion on 24th February 2022. She said that she was “confident in the leaders of today’s world” that their knowledge and awareness of history will inform their continued support of Ukraine.

Vasylenko touched upon the importance of the Baltics as Ukraine’s strongest allies, who have been by Ukraine’s side since the beginning and consistently warned other powers of the threat posed by Russia.

The panel was asked what more can be done by Britain and other allies given that Russia will no doubt continue to pose a threat with its geopolitical influence. Vasylenko said she worried that a victory will not be long-lasting, and that another war will follow. She affirmed that we need to make sure that this war is the only one of its kind in the 21st century, and highlighted the need for unified efforts and a coherent and strong diplomatic response in the form of sanctions and reparations. “I want to see a peace agreement signed with provisions on the demilitarisation of Russia”, Vasylenko said.

“We have taken democracy for granted for too long”, Gideon said. Some countries have become dependent upon Russia or China. She said that when we back away from international aid, “somebody comes to fill the gap, and their intentions are not benign like ours.”

Drummond said she would like to see Russia’s removal from the U.N. Security Council. She voiced her wholehearted support for reparations.