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VOX-POP VOX-POP

Belarus in Focus

In 2025, we need all eyes and ears to track world news — and amidst the geopolitical turmoil, one country is consistently understudied. Belarus is a dictatorial European state, a crucial player in the Russian war in Ukraine, the birthplace of a powerful democratic opposition movement, and last but anything-but-least, a country with a rich cultural history of its own. But Belarus is also a place that receives skimp attention in news media.
Date
26 May 2025
Time
17:00 -19:00
Location
BG 3
Room
VOX-POP, ground floor

At 'Belarus in Focus,' the University of Amsterdam's Slavic Department, Study Association Radost, and the Dutch diplomatic representation in Minsk join forces to boost attention for the country, with short talks, film clips, and a panel discussion. Please join us and use the occasion to firm your grasp on Belarusian language, culture, literature, human rights, migration, and geopolitics — with help from diplomats, researchers, activists, and creative professionals who rank among the best-informed experts of and from the country. Audience members can engage in conversations with these experts in a concluding Q&A.

Speakers (biographies below):

René Kersten (Chargé d'affaires a.i. of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Belarus), Daša Słabčanka (Belarusian activist), Kaspar Pucek (Research fellow, Clingendael Institute) Moderator: Eva Peek (Slavic scholar, NRC).

Programme Overview

  • 17.00-17.15 Welcome by Professor Ellen Rutten (UvA Slavic Studies
  • department) & opening by moderator Eva Peek (NRC Handelsblad)
  • 17.15-17.30 Introductory talk on Belarus by René Kersten (Chargé d'affaires a.i. of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Belarus)
  • 17.30-17.45 Short films by Tasha Arlova (artist/filmmaker), Artemij Vashkevich (Young European Ambassador, Council of Europe)
  • 17.45-18.30 Panel discussion with René Kersten (Chargé d'affaires a.i. of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Belarus), Kaspar Puck (research fellow, Clingendael Institute), Daša Slabčanka (Belarusian activist)
  • 17.30-19.00 Q&A, drinks
René Kersten

René Kersten is a diplomat at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. He started his career in the Foreign Ministry as a desk officer in The Hague for Russia, Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine in 2014. From 2016 onwards, he worked as a political officer in Khartoum, Sudan and in Sofia, Bulgaria. In 2020 he returned to The Hague to work as a senior advisor on the NATO east flank in the Security Policy Directorate of the Foreign Ministry. Since 2023, he is head of mission of the embassy office in Minsk. René Kersten is particularly interested in human rights, (geo)politics and Eastern Europe. He is an alumnus of the University of Amsterdam, Universiteit Utrecht and University College London and has degrees in political science, computer science and security studies, as well as minors in Russian language, mathematics and intelligence studies.

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BG 3

Room VOX-POP, ground floor
Binnengasthuisstraat 9
1012 ZA Amsterdam