Shubhankar Kashyap

Shubhankar is a Radcliffe scholar reading for DPhil in International Relations at the Department of Politics and International Relations and University College at the University of Oxford. He works on the intersections of history of international thought and anticolonial political theory.

Before his studies at DPIR, he gained an MSc in International Relations (Research) from the London School of Economics and a BA (Hons) in Political Science from Ramjas College, University of Delhi.

Alexandra Rice

My DPhil with DPIR focuses on the role of religious actors in official negotiations, specifically in Northern Ireland, Colombia and South Africa with the goal of applying it in Israel/Palestine. Prior to studying at Oxford, I spent five years with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) as the Policy & Research Analyst for the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Russia’s war against Ukraine: Consequences for South East Europe

This seminar will explore the far-reaching consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine for South East Europe. Key topics will include the region’s heightened security concerns, disruptions in energy supplies, and the broader geopolitical shifts resulting from the conflict. We will also discuss how South East European countries are responding to these challenges, both within the frameworks of the EU and NATO, and examine the war's impact on regional stability, political dynamics, and relations with Russia.

The new politics of Poland

A few years of populist rule fundamentally changes the politics of a country. The question is, does it change irrevocably? Not necessarily. In countries where populists have been successfully removed from power, as in Poland, there is theoretically a window of opportunity for a return to liberal democracy. In practice, however, this is extremely difficult, as the current government of Donald Tusk is discovering. The challenge is all the greater as the war in Ukraine and the crisis of democracy in Western countries affect the entire region.

Climate politics and public support for green transition in Europe

This talk will explore the intersection of climate politics and public support for the green transition in Europe, analyzing the political strategies and public attitudes that shape the continent's response to climate change. It will examine how European governments and institutions are addressing the challenges of decarbonisation, renewable energy adoption, and sustainability, while navigating varying levels of public support and opposition.

The Charismatic Paradigm and Modernist Muslim Thought

Leadership in the history of Islam has been fundamentally shaped by two distinct yet overlapping models of religious authority: charismatic and exemplary. Prophet Muhammad was the original charismatic leader of the Muslim community—having assumed the dual mantle as messenger of God’s final revelation and political leader of the first Muslim community. From a Sunni perspective, charisma ended with his death. Muhammad’s legacy continued with the prophetic example of exemplary ethical and religious conduct—what became known as the Sunnah.

Nightmares of Decolonization: Paramilitary Violence and the Making of South Asia

To (mis)quote Jawaharlal Nehru, at the stroke of the midnight hour on August 14/15, 1947, the Indian subcontinent was not just awakening to life and freedom; it was also being ravaged by ultranationalist and fascistic paramilitary movements who viewed freedom as the freedom to dominate as an ethnonational majority. In this paper, I trace the emergence of these movements and their ideologues from the 1920s through to the immediate aftermath of decolonization.

Rethinking Europe’s East-West Divide: Who will lead the EU?

The European Union is facing multiple internal and external challenges, who will lead the EU over the next five years will have profound implications for the nature and the future of the European project. Over the last two decades Central and Eastern Europeans member states have been underrepresented in EU top jobs and have had limited impact on EU policy-making. As the EU is starting a new institutional cycle, the seminar will explore the allocation of top jobs in the EU and their implications for leadership and the balance of power in the EU.
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