Ukraine’s UN ambassador to public talk at Dole Institute on Nov. 12

LAWRENCE — Ukraine’s United Nations Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya will give a public presentation from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Nov. 12 at the Dole Institute of Politics.

A career diplomat, Kyslytsya has served as Ukraine’s permanent representative to the U.N. since 2019 and was Ukraine’s deputy minister of foreign affairs from 2014 to 2019. From 1992 to 1993, Kyslytsya studied at the University of Kansas as an exchange student.

During his presentation, Kyslytsya will describe his journey from Kyiv to KU and his career as one of Ukraine’s leading diplomats. He will talk about his role in the U.N. and his work on the world stage since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine almost three years ago.

Erik Scott, John P. Black Professor of History and director of the Center for Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies, will moderate the event. A question-and-answer session will follow Kyslytsya’s talk.

Kyslytsya will visit KU’s Lawrence campus for several days early next week to meet with faculty, students and the Ukrainian community. He will also attend a lecture by Dora Chomiak, CEO of Razom Ukraine, on “Cultivating Resilience: From the Frontline to Academia.” The lecture will be at noon Nov. 12 in 318 Bailey and is open to the public.

Kyslytsya’s visit highlights KU’s long-standing history with Ukraine and the academic strength of the Department of Slavic, German & Eurasian Studies. KU is one of only a few universities in the United States with two tenured faculty members dedicated to Ukrainian studies and offering multiple levels of Ukrainian language instruction. Additionally, CREES is the only federally designated resource center in the Great Plains focused on Russia, Eastern Europe and Eurasia.

The event is organized by the Slavic, German and Eurasian studies department and CREES and is co-sponsored by KU International Affairs and the Dole Institute.