The Russian attack on Ukraine has, for many, highlighted a culture of double standards regarding ‘good’ versus ‘bad’ refugees – some might be given a spare bedroom in Britain while others may be processed overseas.

Since the conflict began, questions have been raised over why this particular conflict is getting so much airtime. Is Ukraine’s proximity and cultural similarities to Britain a reason Europe’s media and governments care so much, or is it a proportionate response to a global crisis? 

Baroness Claire Fox, the founder of The Institute of Ideas think tank, and Saeed Khan, associate Professor at Wayne State University in Michigan, discuss just what makes one war more ‘just’ than another.

About The Academic

Saeed Khan

Saeed Khan is Senior Lecturer of Near East & Asian Studies and Global Studies of Wayne State University in Detroit, as well the Research Fellow of its Center for the Study of Citizenship. His latest publications include Global Studies: A Reader on Issues and Institutions and What’s Going on Here: US Experiences of Islamophobia between Obama and Trump, co-authored with Saied R. Ameli.

About The Speaker

Headshot of Baroness Claire Fox

Baroness Claire Fox

Claire Fox is the director of the Academy of Ideas, which she established in 2000 to create a public space where ideas can be contested without constraint. She convenes the yearly Battle of Ideas festival and initiated the Debating Matters Competition for sixth-formers. In September 2020, Claire became a member of the House of Lords as Baroness Fox of Buckley having previously been elected as an MEP for the North West England constituency in the 2019 European Parliament elections. She is also a visiting professor in professional practice at the University of Buckingham and author of a book on free speech, I STILL Find That Offensive! (Biteback, 2018)