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After the kitchen talk: „Frieden verhandeln im Krieg“

Published on Jun 17, 2025

The path to achieving a just peace in Ukraine is the subject of heated debate in Europe and beyond. For our May kitchen talk, we invited three speakers to discuss this sensitive topic: What are the prospects of ending the war in Ukraine away from the battlefield? Moderated by journalist and n-ost board member Tamina Kutscher, the panel featured political scientist Cindy Wittke and journalist Mandy Ganske-Zapf, who presented their new book "Frieden verhandeln im Krieg" (Negotiating Peace in War), as well as Anastasia Rodi, Ukraine correspondent for taz.

From left to right: Tamina Kutscher, Mandy Ganske-Zapf, Cindy Wittke, Anastasia Rodi.

How should we think about the path to peace in the midst of a war of aggression?

In their book "Frieden verhandeln im Krieg – Russlands Krieg, Chancen auf Frieden und die Kunst des Verhandelns" (Quadriga 2024), political scientist Cindy Wittke and journalist Mandy Ganske-Zapf analyse how ceasefire and peace negotiations in Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine can be conceived and prepared for – and what it will take to reach a just peace in Ukraine at some point.

With our guests, we discussed not only frozen conflicts, "deals" and conditions for a just peace, but also about the role of science and journalistic reporting when it comes to the discourse on peace in Ukraine.