When we began planning this issue, the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine was rumbling through Europe yet few believed it would happen. What better time to explore how to prevent conflicts, we thought. Once the threat turned into a reality, it became more important than ever.
The Russian war in Ukraine has brought home to the West the fragility of peace. Mariano Aguirre and Patricia Lewis examine the conditions that lead to war and its impacts, making a case for conflict prevention – a goal that is within reach but for a lack of political will. The swiftly unfolding developments make measured analysis of the war a premature exercise. Instead, we map its far-reaching shocks.
