Ambassador Olga Dibrova lectured at the Turku School of Economics
Olga Dibrova, the Ukrainian Ambassador to Finland, recently delivered a lecture at the Turku School of Economics as part of the course KV27 Doing Business in Wider Europe. The course has provided an extensive overview of the economies in wider Europe, with multiple visiting lecturers sharing their expertise on a variety of topics.
A series of lectures ended with a lecture from Ambassador Dibrova, in which she discussed Ukraine’s economy under the war conditions caused by the Russian invasion. The lecture outlined the devastating impact the war has had on Ukraine’s economy. Throughout the lecture, Ambassador Dibrova emphasised the meaning of peace for Ukrainians.
“We are a peace-loving nation. It is important to distinguish, in speech, that this is not a war in Ukraine, but a war waged by Russia against Ukraine. We are facing a major and long-lasting reconstruction of our country. At the same time, we must ensure that this never happens again.”
Ambassador Dibrova also talked about the potential for deepening cooperation between Finland and Ukraine in areas including education, energy, and digital transformation. She also wanted to thank Finland’s stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine by stating that Finland has shown to be a “moral superpower” during the conflict.
“Finland is one of our key partners and allies and is strongly committed to maintaining an international order based on common rules. I thank Finland for its significant solidarity and support during this period and in the future."
The lecture concluded with students asking a range of questions about topics such as landmines and foreign investments in Ukraine. One of the most memorable questions was the very last one when a student wanted to know what has been the most positive experience since the war was started. Ambassador Dibrova mentioned that there have been several positive experiences. However, one of these experiences happened when she gave a speech on Eastern Monday 2022 on the steps of the Helsinki Cathedral during an anti-war demonstration where thousands of people turned out to show their support for Ukraine. Ambassador Dibrova said that during this moment she felt like it was impossible to lose the war if there are so many people supporting the Ukrainian war effort.
The KV27 Doing Business in Wider Europe course, led by Professor Kari Liuhto, the Director of the Pan-European Institute, aims to give an overview of the economic foundations, the foreign economic relations, and the business environment of the key economies in wider Europe. This is done by inviting visiting lecturers to share their expertise with the students. During the course, there have been a number of visiting lecturers from divergent backgrounds including journalists, academics, diplomats, and EU officials who have contributed to the teaching of the KV27 course.