Call for papers Maastricht University, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASoS) Dr. Giselle Bosse and Wicke van den Broek Invite paper proposals from PhD candidates, Post-Docs, and early-career researchers writing academic papers on any aspect of contemporary Belarus, Belarusian history, politics, international relations, economy, human rights and democracy or autocracy studies, for the upcoming Maastricht University Belarus in Brussels Workshop To be held at the Maastricht University Brussels Hub, Thursday 19 June 2025, in Brussels, Belgium Please send your proposals to wj.vandenbroek@maastrichtuniversity.nl by 1 April 2025. Proposals should consist of a title of the paper, an abstract of up to 250 words and the title of your research project. You will be notified mid-April whether your abstract is accepted. Successful participants will be asked to submit the written versions of their papers (5000 words in length) by 30 May 2025. During the conference, presenters offer 10-minute-long presentations of their paper. The draft papers will be circulated to allocated discussants (established scholars on Belarusian and European studies) and other workshop participants. The discussants will lead in offering in-depth comments based on the drafts. Ample time will be reserved for further discussion of the drafts. During the workshop we also plan to hold a roundtable with research organisations focusing on Central- and Eastern Europe. NOTE: There is no conference fee. We will contribute to covering travel and accommodation costs for presenters. Coffee and lunch are provided. Organisers: Dr. Giselle Bosse & Wicke van den Broek, Maastricht University. Co-funded by the University Fund Limburg, FASoS and the European Union

Lecture by David Lewis, Department of Politics, University of Exeter Russia now occupies almost one-fifth of Ukraine’s territory. Quite little is known though about its actual post-2022 day-to-day rule and its occupation policies in these areas besides Crimea. In this talk, held on the occasion of the publishing of his book on the subject, professor David Lewis of the University of Exeter will explain how Russia seeks to subjugate and ‘re-format’ the occupied parts of the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia provinces through a mixture of violent repression, political engineering, collaborationism, economic coercion and propaganda. Lewis will elaborate on how Moscow attempts to create an ‘ersatz Novorossiya’ in areas where about half of the pre-war population fled to Western and Central Europe, Russia or non-occupied Ukraine, and where the remainders, though mostly hostile to the occupiers, face uncomfortable daily choices to survive under occupation. This event is organized by the Centre for Russian International Socio-Political and Economic Studies (CERISE) and the Conflict Research Group (CRG) of Ghent University. Admission is free but registration is required.

The Groningen Institute for Central and Eastern European Studies (GICEES) would like to cordially invite you to attend an engaging and thought-provoking conference.