The Hague

Programma

Date: Tuesday, 24 February 2026
Programme: 18:00-20:00

Venue: Universiteit Leiden (Wijnhaven), Turfmarkt 99, 2511 DP Den Haag

The Adriatic–Baltic–Black–Azov Seas Student Association (ABBA Student Association) is organizing a panel discussion dedicated to nuclear justice and the role of science and technology in contemporary armed conflict, with a specific focus on Russia’s war against Ukraine.

The event will take place on Tuesday, 24 February 2026 (18:00–20:00) at Leiden University, The Hague Campus, and is organized as part of the Remember Together Alliance, marking the 4th anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The discussion aims to bring together academic, technical, and policy-oriented perspectives to examine how nuclear capabilities, scientific institutions, and technological infrastructures are instrumentalized in warfare and coercion. Particular emphasis will be placed on the long-term implications for international security, accountability, and sanctioning mechanisms.

Key themes include:

• Nuclear status beyond political discourse, addressing the technical, infrastructural, and scientific requirements that would theoretically be necessary for a state such as Ukraine to restore nuclear capabilities.
• Russia’s nuclear and missile ecosystem, including key research and production centers, missile systems, and the implications of insufficient or uneven sanctions.
• The weaponization of academic space in support of wartime narratives and state policies.
• Scientific imperial practices, including the systematic appropriation and erasure of Ukrainian scientists and scientific achievements.

The event will take the form of a moderated panel discussion, where invited experts will provide short thematic inputs followed by a moderated exchange and questions from the audience.

The format is designed to encourage dialogue and knowledge exchange between academia, civil society experts, and policymakers.

The panel seeks to contribute to ongoing discussions in The Hague on international justice, accountability, sanctions policy, and the role of science and academia in times of war.