Message from Mathias Vicherat

Dear colleagues, Dear Friends,

I thought it important to write and share with you the actions we have been taking in the last few days, following the war started by Russia against Ukraine in violation of international law.

In this appalling context, the first actions we have taken concern Sciences Po students currently located in Ukraine, to provide them with emergency assistance to leave the country. We have also contacted Sciences Po students of Ukrainian nationality to express our solidarity and to offer them our help, in conjunction with Paris City Hall and the French public services, in the face of any material or psychological difficulties that may arise.

At the same time, the staff of the International Affairs Department are assisting the many Sciences Po students currently in Russia as part of their studies, to help them leave Russian territory in accordance with the instructions of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. This process is still underway for several of these students.

As of next week and the return of our students to campus, two major public lectures will be organized by the School of International Affairs and the School of Public Affairs on the issues and implications of this war. These lectures will be held in the presence of specialists from our academic community and will allow all members of our institution to benefit from a rational and scientific analysis of the facts, through the prism of the human and social sciences. As an international research university, we must continue to research, teach and study the major issues of this area.

But we are also a university with humanist values and a strong commitment to fighting arbitrary violence. This is the essence of the founding principles of Sciences Po, created 150 years ago. I believe that our role is to take action as soon as possible to host researchers - in connection with the PAUSE Programme - and Ukrainian students in exile in order to offer them a place to continue their activities in safety. We are actively working on this. International university cooperation is fundamental in these times of crisis and we must do everything possible to keep it alive. With this in mind, I have contacted my counterpart at our Ukrainian partner university, National University of Kiev - Moyhla Academy, to assure him of our full support and assistance. 

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, I know that many of you - students, employees, teachers, researchers and alumni - have mobilized. All proposals for initiatives to support the Ukrainian people, the Ukrainian academic community and the European values of freedom and solidarity that we share are welcome. Let us continue to act together to promote peace, the defence of freedom of thought and expression, equality and diversity. 

Kind regards, 
Mathias Vicherat