Ubi Concordia, Ibi Victoria (Pubilius Syrus): Where Is Unity, There Is Victory

The fragmentation of societies and identities is a dangerous trend. Destructive misinformation, as we have seen for example with COVID vaccination, is rife and mistrust is growing. The political class has become preoccupied with itself and alienated from its electorate. Religious, ethnic, historical and minority identities have been weaponised, breaking societies into ever smaller, closed, hostile groups.

Speakers

Kaush Arha

Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council

Clément Beaune

Minister of State for European Affairs of France

Anton Drobovych

Director, Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance

Daniela Schwarzer

Executive Director for Europe and Eurasia, Open Society Foundations

Moderator

Hans Kundnani

Head of Europe Programme, Chatham House

The Hungarian intellectual István Bibó wrote in 1944, that the greatest threat to democracy would come when “the cause of the nation” became separated from “the cause of liberty.” Is this fragmentation inevitable? Or can people once again be united around broader liberal ideas and a refreshed commitment to democracy?

What values can the free world build a future on and where should they come from: the nation state, Christian culture, the French Revolution, the Declaration of Independence, international law?
Indeed, are there any common European values, or are they, as Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša remarked, “Imaginary European values without respecting local cultures”?
As authoritarianism spreads in a world shattered by a global pandemic, are the forces that tear us apart stronger than those that hold us together? Can cohesion be rebuilt from fragmentation?