Identity is one of the most powerful political forces in the Western world today. Instead of fading into obscurity as post-Cold War scholars anticipated, identity has returned as a defining metric of politics. In Europe, an ongoing ‘polycrisis’ has manifested in identarian politics, including the rise of ‘populism’. In the United Kingdom, simmering tensions resulted in a messy Brexit characterised predominantly by identity, and in North America, traditional political systems and behaviours have been upended by political agents embroiled in unending ‘culture wars’. Most tragically, identity is at the heart of the ongoing brutal invasion of Ukraine, and the West’s response. The Kremlin’s warmongering has strengthened a sense of Western identity, but questions remain over how long it can endure. The presentation reassesses the importance of identity for the Ukraine war and its aftermath, but also for attempts to strengthen transatlantic bonds between North America, the United Kingdom, and the European Union.

This event is an activity of the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence which is organized with the support of the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, Carleton University and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung (Ottawa Office).