(En)Countering epistemic imperialism: a critique of "Westsplaining" and coloniality in dominant debates on Russia's invasion of Ukraine

  • On February 24, 2022, the world was surprised by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and, perhaps even more so, by Ukraine’s fierce resistance to it. In this article, we examine mainstream and feminist International Relations (IR) debates that have emerged in response to Russia’s invasion, as well as the older debates revived through them. Building on decolonial and feminist scholarship, prominently centering feminist debates from Europe’s East and Central Asia, we argue that dominant Western IR debates on Russia and Ukraine are shaped by inter-imperiality. We trace issues of epistemic injustice, epistemic imperialism and coloniality of knowledge production in mainstream IR and see them replicated in feminist debates, including from global South perspectives. We conclude with a contemplation on the structural changes warranted across academia to eliminate the coloniality of knowledge production about Ukraine and fellow societies as well as Indigenous nations affected by RussianOn February 24, 2022, the world was surprised by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and, perhaps even more so, by Ukraine’s fierce resistance to it. In this article, we examine mainstream and feminist International Relations (IR) debates that have emerged in response to Russia’s invasion, as well as the older debates revived through them. Building on decolonial and feminist scholarship, prominently centering feminist debates from Europe’s East and Central Asia, we argue that dominant Western IR debates on Russia and Ukraine are shaped by inter-imperiality. We trace issues of epistemic injustice, epistemic imperialism and coloniality of knowledge production in mainstream IR and see them replicated in feminist debates, including from global South perspectives. We conclude with a contemplation on the structural changes warranted across academia to eliminate the coloniality of knowledge production about Ukraine and fellow societies as well as Indigenous nations affected by Russian colonial and imperial violence.show moreshow less

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Metadaten
Author:Tereza HendlGND, Olga Burlyuk, Mila O'Sullivan, Aizada Arystanbek
URN:urn:nbn:de:bvb:384-opus4-1111377
Frontdoor URLhttps://opus.bibliothek.uni-augsburg.de/opus4/111137
ISSN:1352-3260OPAC
ISSN:1743-8764OPAC
Parent Title (English):Contemporary Security Policy
Publisher:Informa UK Limited
Place of publication:London
Type:Article
Language:English
Year of first Publication:2024
Publishing Institution:Universität Augsburg
Release Date:2024/02/07
Tag:Political Science and International Relations
Volume:45
Issue:2
First Page:171
Last Page:209
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1080/13523260.2023.2288468
Institutes:Medizinische Fakultät
Medizinische Fakultät / Professur für Ethik der Medizin
Dewey Decimal Classification:6 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften / 61 Medizin und Gesundheit / 610 Medizin und Gesundheit
Licence (German):CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0: Creative Commons: Namensnennung - Nicht kommerziell - Keine Bearbeitung (mit Print on Demand)