EUA Calls Its Member Universities to Cease Collaboration With Any Central Government Agency in Russia

The European University Association (EUA) has condemned Putin’s aggression against Ukraine and said it stands in solidarity with university students and staff in Ukraine as well as all country’s population.

“EUA condemns this aggression in the strongest possible terms, is fully committed to peaceful co-operation, mutual understanding and tolerance across borders, and despite the current situation continues to hope for reflection, restraint and a swift end to the crisis,” EUA notes in a statement published in its website.

According to the statement, EUA will undertake several steps in order to support Ukraine, including ceasing contact and collaboration with any central government agency in Russia or in another country that support Russian actions on Ukraine. The association has called on its member universities to do the same.

Moreover, EUA has recommended to leaders of its member universities and National Rectors Conferences to verify and ensure that they will only work with organizations from Russia based on “shared European values.”

Another step that EUA has highlighted is to constantly engage with its Ukrainian member universities to check on their needs for support and also provide assistance to members of the Russian academic community who oppose Russia’s actions on Ukraine and to the European higher education sector for its support efforts.

Other steps that EUA said it is undertaking include:

• Call its members and academic communities to do their utmost to denounce and press for an end to the war
• Provide support through whatever means to help university communities and everyone who has been affected by the conflict
• Convene its member National Rectors Conferences to identify the best ways to work together to support Ukrainian members in cooperation with other important organizations such as Scholars at Risk and the Magna Charta Observatory
• Reiterate to the leaders of Russian members of EUA, and those of other countries which support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the core European values of EUA and of the Magna Charta Universitatum

Following the events, the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK), the association of public and government-recognized universities in Germany, has acted immediately condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and saying it stands in solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian students.

“We are very concerned about the lives and the well-being of Ukrainian academics and students. The German universities will assist them within the scope of their capabilities. It is also foreseeable that these developments will cause serious damage to German-Russian academic relations. We will have to examine the relevant consequences in detail,” HRK noted.

Due to the situation in Ukraine, leading universities in Australia are also offering assistance to international students who have been impacted by the conflict.

The European University Association (EUA) represents over 850 universities and national rectors’ conferences in 48 European countries.